Lillian's Tale of Two Towns
by Edward'sTrueAngel
Summary: When Lillian came to the two towns, she was quickly embraced by warm and caring people. Well, except for one person. The local florist, Cam. He looked at her with a blank expression and cold eyes yet she still couldn't stop herself from thinking about him. Just what went on in that head of his? Why couldn't she get him out of hers? And why, exactly, did he seem to hate her?
1. The Cold Shoulder

**Author's Note:** Hello everybody! I'm glad that you're here right now reading my new fic. This is technically a sequel to my previous Harvest Moon story that I wrote years and years ago for Magical Melody. Don't let that send you running the other way, though, because reading the other story is definitely _not_ necessary to read and understand this one. The characters and settings are completely different and it is set many years later. Anyway, I hope you stick around and give this story a chance. Go ahead and read it. Reviews are always welcome. Thanks for being here!

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I could be anything that I wanted to be. My mom had always told me that. I could be anything that I wanted to be. I didn't have to follow in anybody's footsteps. I didn't have to meet anybody's expectations. There was no pressure. Even though farming ran in my family and I'd spent my summers helping out at the old family farm back in Flower Bud Village, I wasn't automatically expected to fall into that kind of a life. So the day I decided I was going to become a farmer, it was a decision that was made by me and only me. That's the way it's always been, though. I make whatever decision I make for whatever reasons I see fit. That's never going to change. Sometimes, though, you can meet that one person out there who can almost bend the fabric of reality around themselves and squeeze their way into somewhere you never thought they could: your heart. And that person can suddenly become that reason that you do whatever it is that you do. It happened to me. And I never saw it coming.

I was a young thing, only twenty-two at the time. Yet I felt so old in comparison to the twelve year old I had been ten years before. Looking back, those thoughts of mine were ridiculous. I was a young woman and my whole life had been ahead of me. I didn't know what being old was. All I knew was that the life I had been living was the wrong one. And I didn't know exactly what life would be the right one. But it came to the point when I finally had to stop over-thinking everything and make a decision.

That decision was what led me to the two towns. Bluebell and Konohana. Two beautiful little towns that were so different and yet both filled with the same kind of warm and caring people. This is where my story began. This is where my life began in earnest.

Bright and early one morning, I opened my eyes. Sometimes I woke up a little confused by my surroundings. Sometimes I was surprised to realize that I was on my own in my own home that was definitely not the place where I grew up. Nor was it some dingy apartment that I could barely afford. So this was what it felt like to be an adult, right? This was what it was like to be an independent, self-sufficient woman? Epic.

I threw my legs over the side of my bed and immediately got to work doing what I needed to do to get ready for my day. I came out of the bathroom while brushing my teeth and groaned. The flowers in the basket had wilted. I went back to my bathroom to spit and rinse. With my toothbrush returned to where it belonged, I went over to the basket and disposed of the dead flowers. I always liked to keep fresh flowers in my house. And that, unfortunately, meant that I had to go to the only place where I could get a bouquet: Cam's Flowers.

As I fed my pets and played with them, I dreaded my inevitable encounter. As I tended to my livestock, I still dreaded it. As I watered my fields and harvested some crops, I kept on dreading it. After shipping everything off and heading into town, I let a sigh escape me. I didn't want to go to Cam's Flowers! Cam didn't like me! He hadn't liked me since the day we met. I could remember that day as if it were yesterday. I had been visiting Bluebell from Konohana on that fateful day. I'd figured I'd get the lay of the land in case I ever decided to move there. It was positively charming, this town. I'd found it absolutely adorable. Konohana was a wonderful place as well and I loved living there, but Bluebell had grown on me very quickly.

Eventually happening upon the town square, I had taken a seat in front of the big statue that was situated right in the middle. The breeze had blown the scent of something beautiful to me. I sniffed and then swept the area with my violet eyes, trying to locate the origin of this smell. And that was when I saw him. He was standing there in the midst of his shop, surrounded by these beautiful flowers of so many different colors. The sunshine seemed to single him out from everything else and highlight him, giving this young man a golden glow. My heart had instantly done this. . .this. . .boom-clap thing. I had never been one to take stock in love at first sight. In fact, I could confidently say that I had never been in love before. Ever. And I knew it was certainly not love, but I had definitely felt _something_ that moment I saw him.

He had looked over at me and made eye contact for the briefest of seconds before quickly looking away. In fact, he'd turned his back on me completely and went about tending to his flowers. That blatant dismissal wasn't enough to deter me, though. I'd thought that perhaps I'd imagined things. Maybe he hadn't seen me, but rather had been looking past me. And so I'd walked right on up to that table and cleared my throat to get his attention and introduce myself.

When he turned around he'd had this kind of blank expression on his face and his emerald green eyes had pinned me to the spot. They were beautiful, probably the most beautiful green eyes I'd ever seen. And boy those eyes were cold. Talk about a chilly reception! I hadn't imagined his dismissal after all. Talking to him hadn't been much better and I left there feeling a little angry and defensive. I'd done nothing to him, yet for no reason he seemed to not like me. And that was when I resolved not to give him the time of day. If he wanted nothing to do with me then fine, that would be his loss.

Of course, however, there were those times when being around him could not be avoided. Such as those times when I became in need of a bouquet. I went back into my house to put a few things into my rucksack and then I made my way toward Bluebell. One thing I absolutely loved about living in this small town in the middle of nowhere was the scenery. I reached the end of my driveway and turned left, passing the church and making my way to town. The carefully tended flowers I passed along the way were beautiful and I made a mental note to say something to Rose about the wonderful job she was doing. Too bad she didn't do bouquets as well. . .

"Howdy, Lillian!" Georgia called to me from beyond the fence where she was keeping an eye on her and Grady's horses.

Lillian. I liked the sound of that one name being unaccompanied by another. Back in high school, everybody had liked to call me Lily Raye for some reason. Raye was my middle name _and_ it was a name that had been passed on in my family. I liked it, but I never saw a need for it to be tacked onto the first one as if it were an extension of it. Even my dad had started calling me that sometimes. I resolved that after I graduated and transcended into adulthood, I would go by _one_ name. _Lillian_. Like a normal person.

"Good morning, Georgia! How are you?" I asked her with a smile as I leaned against the fence. She walked over to meet me with a smile of her own.

"Oh I'm just peachy. There's nothing quite like being able to watch such beautiful horses on a lovely day," she drawled with that accent of hers that I thought was as sweet as pie.

Georgia was a horse enthusiast, much like Kana was over in Konohana. Even her bedroom showcased her love for her most beloved creatures.

"How is Evie?" I asked, feeling a little sad even saying the name. Evie was the pony I had made my journey into town with. She was the pony I had spent so much time trekking the mountain between Konohana and Bluebell with. She was the pony I had woken up and tended to bright and early every morning for a whole season. The time had come, however, when I'd needed a larger horse to help me get done the things I needed done. And so I'd traded her for Levi.

Georgia seemed to pick up on my feelings because she gave me a sympathetic pat on the shoulder before she answered. "She's the picture of health. And she's adjusted just fine. You won't have to worry about her not one teensy little bit! If you want to see her, though. . ." she trailed off, looking toward the barn where my Evie was bending over to nibble on some grass.

"No, no. That's fine," I assured her. "I'll come say hi to her another time. I have a lot to do today anyway. I'm just relieved that she's doing so well. Oh! I almost forgot," I said, taking off my rucksack and sitting it on top of the fence so I could dig through it. "I brought you this."

Her face lit up when I presented her with the container that held the fried rice I'd prepared the previous night. "Oh, why, I just love fried rice!" she exclaimed as she took the gift. "Thank you! How thoughtful."

"You're welcome," I told her happily as I closed my rucksack and put it back on. "Oh, I made that last night so you'll probably have to heat it up. I know I'm not a great cook yet, but I've been working on improving my cooking skills for the cooking festivals."

I really had been working hard to improve my cooking skills. For some reason, I felt the strange need to get the approval of Pierre, the gourmet who judged the cooking contests. . .One of these days he would eat a dish that I made and declare that it was as delicious as if it had been made by the Harvest Goddess herself!

After Georgia and I said our goodbyes and headed our separate ways, I went over to Jessica's Livestock to fulfill a request I had taken on yesterday. I still had three days left, but I had the materials assembled now so why not just get it over with? When Jessica saw me, she joked about there being a rivalry between our two farms. Sometimes I wondered if they were really jokes like she said they were. She was a nice woman with a lovely and kind family, but sometimes I really did have to wonder. . .

I had just left out the house and was walking toward the town square when Ash spotted me from by their barn. He was waving me toward him so I shrugged and hopped the fence. "Hey Ash, what's up?"

"That's what I'd like to know," he spoke as I came to a stop before him. "You were walking by looking like somebody stomped on your foot."

I raised an eyebrow and shook my head. "What. . .Oh." I had literally just been pondering my trip to Cam's shop. I let out a sigh and figured it was no use not telling him about it. "I need some fresh flowers for the house."

It was his turn to raise an eyebrow. "So what? You need to go see Cam?" When I nodded, he continued. "What's so bad about that?"

I scoffed and pointed in the general direction of the aforementioned Cam. "Seriously, Ash? He hates me."

"Cam doesn't hate you," he rebutted. "He's just. . ."

"Not my biggest fan, that's for sure. I'm okay with it, though. Really, I am. If he doesn't like me then it's his right not to. I know he's your best friend so he can't be all bad." I cut him off before he could respond to that. "Anyway, I have stuff to do before I go home for the day. You know, I have to keep on my toes if I'm going to one-up your mother in this whole rivalry thing we have going. I'll see you later."

He chose his battles wisely since he dropped the subject of Cam and laughed at my commentary on his mother as I walked away. Ash was a good son. He was devoted to keeping their farm running smoothly and he was a doting brother to Cheryl. I wondered how he did it, keeping his family together the way he did in the absence of the husband and father that was no longer there.

Coming to a stop in front of the request board, I saw that Rutger had posted a request that was due that very day. Him and Rose had this adorable tradition of getting gifts for each other and turning that whole day into a date for the two of them. Rose tended to post requests for things she could use to make them a lovely dinner. Rutger, however, tended to prefer to buy his wife bouquets of flowers. Today's request was no different.

"One red bouquet coming up," I mumbled as I took the request off the board. Well, it appeared I now needed two bouquets from Cam's Flowers.

I glanced ever so slightly to my right toward his shop. I could easily see him from where I was standing and let out a small sigh. Why in the world did he have to be so handsome if he was going to have such a bad personality?! I finally turned fully in that direction and made the walk on over, giving myself little pep talks inside my head along the way. I was all like '_You've got this, Lil_.' and '_You can do it! Don't let him ruffle your feathers with his acerbic attitude!_' There was also '_It's not your fault he's so laconic!_' Stuff like that, you know?

He gave me that same blank expression he always did when I made it over there and not for the first time I had to wonder just what went on in that head of his.

"Cam," I spoke coolly, giving him a curt nod.

"Lillian," he replied, his voice smooth like honey yet just as cool as mine had been.

"I'll be needing some red roses today. I'd appreciate it if you would make me a couple of red bouquets with them."

"Will that be all?" he asked me, making sure that he had all the instructions he needed before he got to work. My response was another nod of my head. He collected the flowers he'd need and immediately got to work.

He worked carefully, yet confidently. He also worked quietly. An awkward silence had fallen between us and the longer it dragged on, the more awkward I felt. I had some inner turmoil, fighting with my own self over whether or not I should attempt some small talk with him even though I was about 99.5 percent sure it would not be reciprocated. Right when I thought I wouldn't be able to take it much longer, he turned back around.

"Here you go," he said as he handed both bouquets over.

"Thank you," I said as I handed over the amount of money he was asking for.

With that said, I flipped my hair over my shoulder and swiftly walked away, telling myself not to look back at him in the process. I failed. It reminded me of the time when my mom told me not to touch the oven or my hand would get burned. I was just too curious and couldn't stop myself then like I couldn't stop myself now. I couldn't stop myself from sneaking one tiny little glance over my shoulder at him as I headed toward Town Hall. I expected for him to be looking at some flowers or off into the distance somewhere. I had even expected to see his back completely turned to me yet again. To my surprise, though. . .he was looking at me, too.

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**Disclaimer: **This is a blanket disclaimer for the entire story. I _do not_ own Harvest Moon or any of the characters associated with the franchise. I am but a humble fan who had a story to tell.


	2. Sending Mail and Meeting Hayate

**Author's Note: **Hi there everybody. I've returned with another chapter and I'm glad that people are reading. Thank you! Any Dirk or Kana fans out there? If so then here's your first chance to see them in the story!

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There were lots of things I missed about living in the city. Television was a big one. My father was another. My mom had died when I was fifteen. My dad and I had a bit of a falling out after that which made my teenage years more turbulent. Everybody grieves in their own way and when dad got a girlfriend only months after my mom's death, I'd felt he was moving on too fast. And I _highly_ disapproved. That was only made worse by the fact that he'd tried to get me to meet her when I was _definitely_ not at a point where I could even consider such a thing. Even trying to consider it made me feel like I was betraying my mother. I was incredibly bitter for a couple of years.

One night when he thought I was asleep, I saw him looking at a picture of my mom and crying. I'd only ever seen him cry three times before in my whole life. The first time had been when he came to my school to tell me what happened to my mom. The second time was at the hospital. The third time was at her funeral. That was when I realized that he hadn't fully moved on. He was still grieving, actually. And he was trying to move forward despite all his inner turmoil. After I thought about it, I realized that mom would have wanted him to move forward and that he wasn't betraying her memory. Rather, he was trying to do what she would have wanted him to do and not be alone. When I came to terms with that, I'm ashamed to say I never apologized to him for how I acted. Still, though, I got with the program and stopped judging him. I gave him my approval, which he had actually been seeking all along, and let him know I loved him no matter what. Our relationship definitely improved from there.

I missed him. I'd never been away from him for more than a few days in all my life and now I was living in the middle of nowhere running a farm that was all my own. Therefore, we wrote letters to each other on a regular basis. He found it funny how I was so determined to improve my cooking for the cooking festivals. I hadn't been one of those girls who started cooking for their fathers in the absence of their mother. My dad had actually picked up the slack on that. Now I was attempting to make up for lost time by learning how to do something more than sticking a frozen meal in the microwave. Actually, learning was pretty necessary since we didn't have microwaves in Bluebell. . .So far Georgia had been my willing guinea pig and she was still alive so hey.

After I finished up my work on my Bluebell farm for the day, I sat down and took the time to write my father a letter. I then ventured into town to do a little socializing and to check on requests. It was still so early in the day that Cam hadn't opened up shop yet. He was behind the table doing preparations, though, and I spotted him from the town square. He glanced over in my direction, but when he spotted me he quickly glanced elsewhere. So when I had to go into Howard's Cafe to fulfill a request for Laney, I swept straight past him without so much as a look in his general direction. Admittedly, I glanced through the window at him once I was inside and was sure he couldn't see me, but. . .

When all of that was done, I felt like it was still early enough in the day for me to venture a trip over to Konohana. So I hitched my horse up to my cart and headed toward the mountain.

"Hey, Dirk!" I said, waving at him enthusiastically as he made his way up the mountain. Since I so frequently sent and received letters from my father, I'd seen quite a bit of Dirk and we'd become friends rather quickly because of that.

"Lillian, hi. How are you today?"

I climbed down from my horse and rubbed her affectionately before making my way over to Dirk. "I am _great_. I have another letter for you today, if you don't mind taking if off my hands," I practically sang. I always got so excited when I was sending to or receiving a letter from my father. My earlier non-encounter with Cam couldn't even put a damper on that.

He smiled in amusement as he held out his hand and accepted the mail. "Of course I don't. That's kinda my job, isn't it? Besides, how could I say no when you're smiling from ear to ear like that?"

"Thanks. Take good care of it. Oh, you accept packages, too, don't you? I mean, I'd like to send my dad something sometime."

Dirk gave me one of those 'don't be silly' looks before he smiled a little wider. "Yeah, I can do that. What will you be sending?"

He seemed to remember he had my mail in his hand still so he opened up his bag and put it inside, careful to keep it separate from the mail he was in the process of delivering. "Food. My dad's a better cook than me and I'd like to prove it to him that I'm improving."

I gave him my determined, victory shall be mine pose and that prompted him to laugh. "Alright. I've got you covered. Hey, maybe some time we can hang out together at Yun's Tea House and while we're there, she can give you a couple of pointers."

"Hey now, that's a great idea. Hiro did mention to me that he goes to Yun for pointers on cooking. I just haven't gotten around to doing that yet. Count me in."

"Good. Sounds like a plan, then." He suddenly remembered the time and gave me an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, but I still have a lot of mail to drop off so. . ."

I did a little shooing motion with my hand. "That's fine. I'll talk to you another time. I don't want to hold you up any more than I already have."

"You didn't hold me up," he called over his shoulder as he walked away. "You delayed me a little bit."

I rolled my eyes a little, but smiled as I made my way back over to Levi and continued on my way. I picked up a few weeds along the way and some poison mushrooms since I never knew when Ayame would post a request for such unusual things. I even collected some lavender and a couple of plums.

When I made it to Konohana, I stopped by to chat a little with Sheng. He assured me that he was going to post a request first thing next season to upgrade one of my tools. He also asked me how Eileen was doing. There was a mutual respect between the two of them. Eileen had even told me once that she hoped to marry a man just like Sheng someday. I wondered if a panda outfit was included in that wish of hers. I personally thought Sheng looked adorable, but. . .When I started laughing at my own thoughts, Sheng had stood there confused wondering what in the world caused me to dissolve into giggles so abruptly.

When I was done there, I made my way over to the Konohana farm I had lived at before. Even though I didn't live there, I did still plant crops there since there was hardly any room for such things back in Bluebell. Ina approved, so I made use of the land as I saw fit. I couldn't wait until my corn was ready. I loved corn and was already making plans for the ones I decided to keep rather than ship off.

I had a small patch of land in front of my house in Bluebell that was just big enough to plant a couple of crops. Perhaps I could plant some flowers there. There were flowers growing in the boxes in front of the windows of my house, but those were for decoration. Maybe I could grow some flowers and ship them off for money. . .How I jumped from corn to flowers in my mind, I didn't know. I shook my head and finished tending to my crops before heading over to Kana's.

"Kana, what's up?" I said as I breezed into his shop.

His face lit up when he saw me and he pushed away from the counter he'd been standing behind. "Nothing much, just the same as usual. What brings you to my neck of the woods?"

Kana was muscular with dark hair and eyes. His skin was this lovely golden shade and he had these cool looking tattoos. He was quite handsome in a definitely masculine way. In addition to that, he had this outgoing and warm personality that made him fun to be around. Essentially, he was the exact opposite of Cam. The same Cam who frustrated me to no end and I thought about way more often than I should. Therefore, Kana appealed to me.

"Oh you know, I had crops to tend to. And I thought I'd say hello to people in the village and take on some requests. So, basically the same as ever."

"How's the new horse?" he asked me.

I gasped, having forgotten I hadn't shown him Levi yet. "Oh! I haven't introduced the two of you yet. Do you want to meet her?"

"Are you joking? Of course I do," he told me as he followed me out the door. In fact, he nearly made it out the door before I did since he was moving so fast.

Levi was right where I left her, attached to my cart. Kana hurried over and let out a whistle. "She's a beauty," he told me as he rubbed her affectionately. Levi let out a happy little sound and nuzzled into his hand. I should have known she'd take to him immediately.

"Kana, meet Levi. Levi, this is Kana. The horse whisperer. Well, the other horse whisperer."

"The _other_ horse whisperer?" he said with a laugh. "And wait, Levi? Isn't that a guy's name. . .?"

"Indeed it is. But when I saw her she just. . .I don't know, she just looked like a Levi to me. And she didn't object when I called her that so I don't think she minds having a guy's name."

Kana raised both his eyebrows in surprise and then finally shook his head. "Alright. I guess Levi is a good name."

"This coming from the man who named his horse Hayate," I mumbled.

"What was that?" Kana asked with an amused glint in his eyes, knowing full and well he'd heard exactly what I'd said.

"I brought you something." I told him as I went over to my cart and located what I was looking for. I handed over a horse treat.

He beamed at me instantly. "Whoa! For me? Seriously? Awesome! Thank you!"

He always got so excited whenever I brought him something. It made me happy to see somebody so pumped up over something like that. "Yeah. I know how Hayate likes the treats from Bluebell. I have to keep her supplied. I'm her," and with this I whispered conspiratorially, "supplier."

Kana threw his head back and laughed at that. "Yeah? Well we don't get too many. . ._suppliers_ way out here."

"Well they're a dime a dozen back in the city," I told him with a nod. He sent me a look and I waved my hand back and forth dismissively. "Not that I've ever come across one myself."

Satisfied with my definitely truthful answer, he gave me a thoughtful look before talking again. "You wouldn't want to meet her, would you? Hayate, I mean."

I gave him a surprised look at that. We'd talked about Hayate before, but I hadn't actually seen her yet. I could tell she was Kana's pride and joy and I'd always figured he'd get around to it sooner or later. "Yeah. Of course I would. Kana, are you sure?"

He gave me this funny little look before nodding. "I'm sure."

"Okay," I said before turning back to Levi and telling her I'd be back in a couple of minutes.

Once I was on the other side of the fence, I nervously followed Kana into the barn. I didn't even understand why I was nervous. It felt like I was getting ready to meet my future mother-in-law or something. When I stepped inside, I saw a beautiful brown horse nibbling on some hay. Kana went over to her and stroked her affectionately. The horse nuzzled against his hand just as affectionately.

"Let me introduce you to my beloved horse, Hayate!"

"Hello Hayate," I said as I approached her. "I'm Lillian. It's nice to meet you!"

"Lillian is the one who's been bringing you all those tasty treats," Kana said as he held it out to her. At that, Hayate made a very happy sound and accepted the gift. Kana looked back at me with a big smile. "I should mention that Hayate and I are pretty close. But I'll bet you already figured that out."

I nodded and that was all he needed to continue on. "Hayate and I actually grew up together." He suddenly touched his chin and got a thoughtful, faraway look on his face. "She gave me a lot of trouble as a kid! She wouldn't let anyone ride her. But of course, I was too stubborn to quit trying. I fed her by hand every day until she trusted me enough to let me ride her."

"Well, they say that good things come to those who wait. I bet riding Hayate was worth the wait, huh?"

His expression shifted back to the here and now. "Yeah. Since then, her and I have never missed a chance to ride. But now that she's getting older, she gets leg pains sometimes. So I don't push her too hard these days."

"Awww," I said as I looked down at Hayate's legs, hoping that she didn't have too much pain to endure. "She's really like family to you, isn't she, Kana?"

"Yeah, exactly!" he said enthusiastically. "I've known her as long as I've known anyone. She's a part of my family. I can't imagine life without her." At that, Hayate made another happy sound. "Isn't that right, Hayate?" She responded with the same kind of enthusiasm he had and nuzzled against his chest. "Cut it out! That tickles!"

"You two are so adorable together," I said, taking it all in with a big smile. They really did have quite a bond.

Hearing me talk seemed to remind him that I was actually there. He'd gotten kind of wrapped up with Hayate for a minute there. "Hey, Lillian, I'm glad I got to introduce you to Hayate today."

"I'm glad, too. You're right, she's a beautiful horse," I told him earnestly. She really was everything he'd said she was whenever we'd talked about her before.

"Seems like Hayate likes you too." At that, Hayate made what could only be described as a sound of approval. "I hope you'll stop by sometime to see Hayate again. Thanks for coming today, Lillian."

"No, really, the pleasure was all mine," I assured him. "Although, I _have_ left Levi out there by herself for a while now and I need to get into town."

"Okay, that's cool. I'll talk to you the next time you're in Konohana, alright?" Even though I went to Konohana to look after my crops, I didn't always get around to seeing everybody I wanted to.

"Sure. Next time. Bye now, Hayate."

I could have sworn she said goodbye to me in horse language before I left the barn and headed back to my own horse.


	3. Flower Festival Confrontation

**Author's Note: **I have a little free time so I thought I'd send another chapter your way. The tide is about to turn for Lillian. Heh heh.

To my lovely reviewer: Yay! I'm so happy that you like it. And just wait until you see what I have planned for Kana about ten chapters from now. . .

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Continuing on from my previous frame of thought, there were many things that I loved about a small town as opposed to the city. The fresh air was one. The close-knit community feel was another. And then there were the festivals. There was always a festival of some kind going on, it seemed, and I loved the excitement of it! The next festival that was coming up just so happened to be the Flower Festival in Bluebell. From what I had been told, I was supposed to give flowers out to the townspeople and they would do the same to me. I thought the idea of it was incredibly sweet. They definitely didn't do such things back in the city.

I woke up that morning in such a good mood that even an impending trip to Cam's Flowers couldn't bring me down. I mean, surely he'd be in a good mood that day of all days, right? A Flower Festival should be right up that man's alley. He would certainly be getting a lot of business. I mean, I did tend to forage in the mountain for flowers often for requests and whatnot, but I was pretty sure the rest of the town wasn't going to be doing that for their flower needs and especially not on festival day. And since it was a festival perfectly suited for him, I figured I would throw my business his way that day.

The Flower Festival was just the little pick-me-up I needed since Bluebell suffered a defeat at the hands of Konohana during the cooking festival the previous day. Pierre had said that my food was okay, which was a definite improvement over what it had been previously. And Georgia had assured me that the fried rice I'd made her was getting better as well. I still had Dirk's invitation to Yun's Tea House to look forward to and I was sure Yun would give me some advice. Then again, should I really ask her for help since I currently lived in Bluebell rather than Konohana? I did have half a mind to ask Howard and Laney to take me under their wing or even Jessica. One way or another, though, I was going to help bring in a victory one of these days!

So it was the day of the Flower Festival and I stood by the fence watching my cow, Tifa, graze on some grass. Rufus, my ever-watchful saint bernard was keeping watch and making sure she didn't wander away. It was a nice day that day. It wasn't too hot and there was a refreshing breeze blowing. It was a niece reprieve from the scorching heat and I wondered if I could dare to hope for some rain in the coming days. It was then that I realized I'd neglected to listen to the radio that morning. I'd have to remember to check out the weather report before I went to bed that night.

Glancing down at my wrist at my trusty watch, I noticed what time it was. If I planned on getting everybody in town a flower and tending to my crops in Konohana all in the same day then I'd better get a move on it. Somewhere in the back of my mind I wondered if there would ever come a time when I would be so busy that I would have to choose between focusing on raising livestock or growing crops. As it was, I was hoping to take on some more animals yet I knew that doing so would leave me less time to plant an abundance of crops. I was balancing things just fine at the moment, but what about in the future. . .?

I didn't mess around when I made it into town. I made my way straight toward Cam's Flowers. He had just opened up for the day and there was already a line forming for those fresh flowers of his. I stood there, watching him in his element. Laney was up at the table and she was chatting him up. And he was actually talking back! And he wasn't responding in that clipped tone he used on me. He sounded so. . .so _warm_. It was startling. I took two steps forward to head up the stairs and join the line when I felt somebody grab my arm. I looked behind me and saw Ash standing there with a big smile.

"Good morning Lillian," he told me with warmth like he always had, the kind of warmth that I wondered if Cam gave to everybody but _me_.

"Ash! Hey there. How's your morning going so far?" He let go of my arm and I turned around to face him. He looked so dang cheerful and had this sparkle in his eye. It was cute seeing him so uppity.

"It's going great. I love a good festival," he said, standing there with his arms behind his back. "So, umm. . ." he trailed off and stood there kind of awkwardly.

"Umm?" I prompted when he didn't continue. He was looking a little weird and it was worrying me. "Are you okay, Ash? Maybe you should go to bed and take a rest. I mean, the townspeople will still be here in a couple of hours."

"No! I'm fine. It's just. . .here," he said before he took his hands from behind his back. He was holding a beautiful red rose that he surely must have bought from Cam before I made it into town.

I was in awe for a moment, staring down at the perfect petals of that rose and trying to grasp that it was indeed for me. I should have expected to receive a flower since it was the Flower Festival and all. Still, though, I found myself being unprepared for such a gift. I smiled up at Ash and gladly accepted the flower. "It's beautiful. I don't know what to. . .Thank you, Ash. This was sweet of you." He beamed at me like Kana had the other day and I hadn't even given Ash anything yet. And that was when I remembered. "Oh! I am _so _sorry, Ash. I don't have a flower to give you yet. I was just on my way to buy some when you showed up."

That didn't put a dent in his mood. He merely shook his head and kept on smiling. "That's alright. Don't sweat it."

"I'll bring you one later, okay? I promise. I just have to. . ."

"It's okay. I'll go home now and let you do what you need to do. I'm just relieved you like the flower."

"Of course I do. Anyway, I won't forget about you. I'll be over there later," I told him as he turned and started walking away.

"Later," he replied, raising his hand and waving as he made his way back toward Jessica's Livestock.

I turned around and took a few steps forward toward Cam's shop. I stopped, though, and looked down at the flower. I smiled brightly, hoping that I would receive more flowers that day. Perhaps I could get a bouquet made from them and put them in my house after the last bouquet I had Cam make me needed replacing.

With a smile on my face, I looked up toward my destination. The line had gotten shorter and Rutger was at the front of it. He was saying something, but Cam didn't seem to be paying any attention. Shockingly, he was standing there watching me. When he realized that I saw him, he directed his attention back to Rutger and seemed to be giving some kind of apology before getting what Rutger had asked of him.

I made my way up the few stairs and took my place at the back of the line. While I was standing there, I carefully placed the flower Ash had given me inside my rucksack. Honestly, I had no idea how so much stuff fit in there. It was like it was bigger on the inside or something. Before I knew it, it was my turn to stand before Cam and ask for my flowers.

Apparently he had spoken to me because he was standing there expectantly, waiting for an answer. "Oh! I. . ."

Suddenly, I felt pretty bad. I mean, back when I worked in fast food I had to deal with a lot of people who pressed on my last good nerve. There was one lady who would _always _stand in line all that time and then wait until she finally got up to the counter to pull out her cell phone and call home. She'd then spend the next five minutes discussing what food to order with the people back at her house. While I'd appeared as the patient and dutiful employee on the outside, I'd always felt so upset on the inside. I'd wondered why she'd stood in line all that time and then waited until it was her turn to order to call home and iron out all those fine little details. Now, it was me who had committed that troublesome crime. I stood in line all that time and realized when I made it to the counter that I had no idea how many flowers I was going to get. "I'm so sorry. Would you give me a second?"

He looked slightly irritated, but put his poker face back on. "Take all the time you need." I got the feeling that the rest of the sentence in his head went something like 'It's not like I don't have other customers to serve while you're standing there wasting my time.' Then again, who in the world was I to attempt to finish sentences in his head for him? Besides, there wasn't even anybody else in line now.

I quickly took a count of everybody in town who I would be buying a flower for and shot Cam an apologetic look. This was just what I needed, wasn't it? Here I was giving him another reason to dislike me. I felt something sinking in my stomach. "I'd like to get twelve red roses, please."

When the total came up I didn't mind spending the money because seeing all those smiling faces would be worth it. It put a dent in my wallet as far as the money I had on hand went, but my crops would be ready to harvest soon enough and hopefully I would be able to make it up then.

I handed the money over to Cam and started to walk away. I only got a grand total of five feet away before I realized I just couldn't do this anymore. I just couldn't keep going on this way with Cam. I really needed to clear the air and I felt like if I didn't do it right then, I would just chicken out and everything would continue to build inside of me. So I turned around and walked back to the table.

He saw me coming and spoke when I got there. "It's Flower Day, so I'm really busy today."

That didn't deter me from what I felt I had to say. "Look, Cam. I have. . .absolutely _no_ idea why you hate me. To my knowledge, I've done nothing to offend you. If I have somehow, though, then I'm sorry. But I can't keep like. . .dreading it every time I come here. It's a small town and we're bound to run into each other. I'd rather not have the urge to turn and run the other way every time that happens or end up acting like an immature twelve year old or something."

Cam stood there looking genuinely surprised. I mean, he had raised his eyebrows and his mouth was open a little. I'd managed to elicit something other than that standard blank expression he usually wore when I was around. Having said what I felt I needed to say, I turned and started to walk away again.

"Lillian, hold on. I don't hate you." He stuck one hand in his pocket and rubbed the back of his head with the other. Cam looked to the right with this confused sort of expression on his face. "Look, it's not you. And I certainly don't _try_ to be this way. I just. . .I have a hard time warming up to new people. Bluebell doesn't get many new faces and they're not always trustworthy. And. . ." He looked like there was something more to the story that he wanted to say, but thought better of it at the last second. "Anyway, I'm sorry."

He'd just apologized to me. He'd really just apologized to me? It was my turn to stand there looking surprised. I'd expected to make him end up hating me more and he'd told me never had. I felt a little guilty and embarrassed then for making assumptions. "I-I'm sorry I've spent so much of my time judging you like that. Thank you for explaining to me, Cam." An awkward silence settled between the two of us for a few moments before I realized I had something in my bag. "Hey, I was on the mountain yesterday and I came across this. It made me think of you and I wanted to give it to you today. I guess I was hoping it would make you not hate me. But you said you don't hate me, so. . ."

I cleared my throat rather uncomfortably before I opened up my rucksack and located the magic blue flower I had picked up the previous day on my way home from the cooking festival. I handed it over to Cam. ". . . What? A flower for me?" Before I knew it, his face changed to an expression I'd never seen before and certainly never seen directed at me. He smiled. My heart immediately did that boom-clap thing again. "Thank you very much. I'll be sure to keep this flower in a safe place."

There it was, that warmth I'd seen him have toward Laney earlier. Only now it was directed at me. I smiled at him cautiously, worried that there was a catch somewhere and that he'd suddenly start giving me the cold eyes and clipped tone again. He didn't, though.

"I'm happy you like it. And I'm happy you don't. . .you know. . .hate me." Had the temperature gone up or something? I suddenly felt overly hot. "I have a lot of other flowers to give out so I'm gonna. . ."

"Wait, I. . ." He looked sheepish as he turned his back on me. Only this time, I didn't feel like he was dismissing me by turning his back. It was nice not to have that worry in my mind. Well, not to have it in my mind _too much_. "Here."

He handed me what he had absolutely no way of knowing was my absolute favorite flower. It was a sunflower. I'd always loved sunflowers. Not only were they bright and yellow and resemble my childhood drawings of the sun, but they followed the sun wherever it was in the sky, trying to reach toward that vibrant light.

After I thanked him and finally left, I made my way around town. I delivered all of my flowers with the biggest smile on my face. It felt like a weight had been lifted and I felt all light and airy. My last stop was Jessica's Livestock. After I gave Jessica and Cheryl their flowers, I asked if Ash was out back since I wanted to give him a flower as well. Cheryl had certainly looked less than pleased about that and looked like there was something right on the tip of her tongue to say, but Jessica had put her hand over her daughter's mouth and smiled before saying "Where else would he be? He's such a good son. It's a festival day and he still wanted to squeeze in a little work. Go right on out and take your time."

With a wave goodbye, I left the shop and hopped the fence. He was kneeling down tying his shoe. He saw me out the corner of his eye and quickly stood up. "Lillian. Hey."

"Hey. Here I am, just as I promised," I told him as I held out the final rose I had purchased from Cam. "I hope you like it. Happy Flower Day."

"Thank you!" he enthused with a broad smile as he accepted the rose. "I'm going to put this in some water and take good care of it."

"I'm happy then! You'd better take good care of it because I'll be swinging by to make sure it's actually still alive." The look he gave me was priceless and I couldn't resist having a laugh. "I'm just kidding!"

"Very funny," he told me, giving me a fake look of upset. It made me laugh a little harder.

"And Ash?"

"Hmm?" he asked as he looked at the flower like it was the best thing ever.

"You were right, you know," I told him, smiling gently as I thought about the beautiful sunflower currently resting inside my rucksack. "Cam's not a bad guy after all."

After that, I said bye and made my departure. I didn't look back so I never saw the conflicted look that Ash had on his face as he watched me walk away.


	4. Food for Thought

**Author's Note:** Hi everybody. I meant to update earlier, but I got sidetracked by a few things. I'm here now, though, and I've brought a new chapter with me. Thanks for supporting my story thus far, be it by reviewing, following, or most importantly by simply reading. Here's the chapter!

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As I went about my work in Konohana, I thought back to the Stargazing Festival that had taken place a couple of nights before. Of course, that memory was preferable to that of the Cooking Festival, which we had lost again. I was really starting to think that it was my fault. Was I the one who was dragging the rest of the team down? Of course, that only increased my determination to become an excellent cook! Anyway, back to the Stargazing Festival. I had felt extremely inspired by the lovely night sky.

It had been such a beautiful event. The whole village had gone to the peak of the mountain and stared up at the stars together. It was truly an experience that one just didn't get to have in the city. Back there, pollution insured that even if you did get to see some stars, they were nowhere near as plentiful and magnificent as they were under a wide and clear sky. I had been in awe. _And_ I had enjoyed my company. The people within my particular age group had seemed to just gravitate toward each other. And that, naturally, included Cam. If somebody had told me a couple of weeks ago that I would be standing within a group that included Cam and not feel like the cold chill of winter was upon me, I would have thought they were seriously deluded. Now, though. . .

After Flower Day, something just seemed to change between Cam and I. The next day, I'd waved at him from the flowerbed where I was chatting with Laney. And he had waved back. Albeit, he'd waved a little awkwardly but still. . .Anyway, I had gone foraging in the mountains again and come across some lavender I thought he might like and brought it to him. After that, I made it a point to try and bring him something every day if I could. I thought that maybe that would help us get on the road to becoming something I never thought we would be: friends.

"That sounds similar to the moon festival here in Konohana," Ina mused as I told her about the details of the festival I'd attended. "Of course, I'm sure our festival is better than anything they have over there in _Bluebell_." She said the name of the town as if it left a nasty taste in her mouth. I really, _really_ hoped that Ina and Rutger would find a way to reconcile. Any time I thought they might be making a little progress, the two of them would say things such as this that would make me wonder if we were all right back at square one.

"I'm sure that it's a lovely experience in both villages," I said, trying to smooth things over and maybe talk a little sense into her. "After all, with nice people and a beautiful sky, who could _not_ be happy?"

She looked at me like she wanted to say something more, but thought better of it. In the end, she smiled at me a little indulgently and shook her head. I sighed. Something was gonna give eventually, darn it. I just didn't get this whole rivalry between the two towns. It had been hundreds of years since the initial bickering began and every generation after that carried on their ancestor's anger. If my great great great great great great grandmother hadn't liked somebody and I were to come across that person's descendant myself, was I going to hold a grudge on her behalf? Nope.

I ended up going to chat with Nori. I was still trying to get closer to Reina, who had a personality that reminded me a little of Cam's, but she was out doing research somewhere on the mountain and I didn't want to intrude. Nori was inside Gombe's shop, sitting at their table. Gombe's eyes lit up when he saw me and welcomed me inside.

"Hello!" he said rather cheerfully. "It's already midday. I hope you're making use of that youthful energy!"

"It's nice to see you, Gombe. And I'd like to think I'm putting it to good use. Otherwise, I'm not doing my job as a farmer now am I?"

"Now that's the spirit!" he responded happily. "Now how about you tell me a joke? Come on, I know you want to!"

So essentially, I spent most of my time trying to entertain Gombe considering he felt particularly board having to tend to his shop and wanted nothing more than to be able to go play. By the time I got to go sit down with Nori, I was particularly conscious of the time.

"Well that sounds lovely!" she told me as she delicately propped her elbows up on the table and put one hand on top of the other before resting her chin on top of them. "The Stargazing Festival sounds just as beautiful as the Moon Festival."

"I had such a good time. Whenever I'm up on the mountain at night, I'm usually hurrying to get home and I don't get to pay attention to the sky. Nori didn't respond to that. She was quiet and I started to worry a little. "Nori?"

"Hmm?" she replied, blinking as if I'd snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Where did you go? You completely spaced out for a minute there."

"Oh, I was just thinking that it would be fun if you could come to the Moon Festival next season. Then you could experience both the festivals and see how great the both of them are." She smiled at me so sweetly right then.

"Oh, I. . .Well I would have to move back to Konohana to do that." The end of summer was approaching and I had the option of leaving Bluebell and going back to Konohana for autumn. Somehow, that had slipped my mind in the midst of everything I'd had going on.

She seemed to realize the dilemma she'd brought before me because she gave a small gasp and an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry, Lillian. I didn't mean to imply anything or try to influence you. I just. . .Of course I would be happy if you came back to Konohana, but that's completely up to you."

"It's okay," I assured her. "If it had been somebody else, like Ina perhaps, I would've thought they were trying to convince me to move back. But I know you weren't. You did give me something to think about, though. I've been so busy that I hadn't even thought about switching towns."

It wasn't long after that when I realized that it really was getting late and it'd be smart for me to start heading home. I considered the idea Nori had put in my head the whole way back to Bluebell, but I decided I would approach the subject again the next week when the end of summer came. Until then, I would stay focused on all the things I had going on in Bluebell.

While I was in Konohana, I had fulfilled a delivery request from Rose. It was on the late side when I got back into town, but I decided I would check in with her and get my reward anyway. It was late enough that her and Rutger were already upstairs and I almost decided to just head on home. Rutger just happened to be on his way downstairs and caught me halfway out the door.

"Lillian? Is that you?"

"Yeah, umm. . .Hey, Mayor," I said kind of awkwardly, looking a bit like I was a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Then again, we never had a cookie jar when I was a kid because the cookies never lasted long enough to warrant a cookie jar. My dad had a major sweet tooth and it was grab cookies now or get none later.

"Well come on in. There, that's better now," he said, coaxing me back into the confines of the town hall. "Now, why don't you tell me why you're here this late?"

"I made a delivery for Rose while I was over in Konohana today and I had wanted to collect my reward, but then I thought maybe it was a little too late for me to be bothering the two of you and I was thinking about coming back tomorrow instead."

"Nonsense, it's no bother. Why don't you come up? Rose was just sitting down at the table with a cup of tea. I'm sure she would enjoy having you."

When I asked him if he was sure he told me yes and ushered me up the stairs. And there was Rose, sitting at the table with a beautiful little tea cup in her hands. It was an off-white color with tiny detailed flowers extending from a vine design that wrapped all the way around the cup. She looked rather surprised to see me, but smiled just the same. "Ah, Lillian. It's lovely to see you. What brings you here at such a late hour, dear?"

I pulled the request I'd taken off the board that morning from my pocket and presented it to her. "I answered your request, ma'am."

"Well now. . .Did you deliver what I asked?" When I gave her a nod as an answer, she continued with a look of delight present on her kind face. "Thank you! Well, here's your reward. You earned it, dear."

Rose handed over some chicken feed. I never seemed to run low on chicken feed because she always kept me supplied from her request rewards. Which was a good thing, I suppose, because that kept me from having to constantly buy more. I didn't want to linger for too long, so after a short and friendly chat, I left them to enjoy the rest of their night in peace. When I came out of the town hall, I thought about how happy Diego, Raul, and Enrique had all been with their birthday gifts. I was so in my own thoughts that I was surprised when I noticed something outside of Howard's Café. There was a person sitting at one of the tables staring over at the flowerbed. He heard my footsteps and looked over in my direction. He seemed to realize who I was at the same time I realized who he was. It was Cam. I stood there awkwardly for a few seconds before waving at him. When he waved back at me, I continued on my way.

"Hey. . .wait?" he called out to me.

I immediately stopped in my tracks and turned back in his direction quite curiously. Cam was actually calling out to _me_? That was something new. "What's up, Cam?"

A cloud had moved over the moon and his back was to the light spilling from the cafe, so I couldn't really tell if his trademark blank expression was on his face when he said what he said. I could've sworn that I could see the slightest darkening of his cheeks, though. It must have been a figment of my imagination because if I couldn't even discern the expression on his face in the dark then how could I see his cheeks? "Would you like to go for a walk with me, Lillian?"

My mouth rounded in an 'o' from surprise. Cam wanted to take a walk with me?! Like. . .he actually wanted to go somewhere just the two of us and carry on a conversation that didn't involve me confronting him in front of his place of work out in public on a busy festival day? He was looking at me, waiting on his answer. I wasn't sure how to get my response out of my mouth so I nodded at him. At that point in time, that cloud moved away from the moon so I had a good enough view of his face to see him smile! He was smiling again now, too? After all those blank stares and cold eyes I still wasn't sure how to process that expression on him. "Where shall we go?"

"Oh, well. . ." I paused to consider what a satisfactory location would be. For some reason, I had a feeling that it was important to choose a good spot. "Hey, there's actually a spot outside of town that's not too far from my farm. I mean, unless you'd rather not go all the way out there." Now that I thought about it, maybe I shouldn't be suggesting he go so far out of town at that time of night. I was about to change my mind and make a different suggestion, but he talked before I could get the words out.

"Okay then. I think I know the spot, actually." He put his hands in his pockets and nodded in the direction that would lead us out of town. "Are you ready to go?"

"Sure," I responded, taking the lead and heading that way. He immediately caught up to me and matched my pace as we strolled through the moonlit town of Bluebell. It wasn't until we were passing by Jessica's Livestock that I decided to speak some more. "I didn't mean to cause a scene before. You know, during Flower Day? It was a busy day for you and I just unloaded on you right in front of your shop."

He was surprised by my softly uttered words as he reached up and tugged at his hat. "I wouldn't really call that a scene. Besides, whatever it was, I deserved it. I kind of brought it on myself with the way I acted."

The night was warm, but a cool breeze made its way through, blowing the scent of flowers to me. Although I wasn't exactly sure whether it was emanating from the various flowers surrounding the area or if the lovely scent was coming from Cam. I studied him in the light cast by the moon. It was interesting. Most guys wouldn't want to spend their days surrounded by flowers and definitely wouldn't like smelling like them. Yet Cam wasn't most guys. Not for the first time I wondered what was going on in his head. What made him tick?

Cam noticed me looking at him before I could look elsewhere. "What?" he asked.

Even though it was too late, I employed the tactic of looking everywhere but at him. The trees were swaying in the gentle breeze. The land was lit by the light of the moon, taking on an otherworldly glow. The sky was filled with dazzling stars. It really was a beautiful light. "Nothing. It's nothing," I said as we reached my driveway and headed toward the spot we'd agreed upon.

I picked a bench and sat down, motioning for him to come over and join me. He sat down next to me, an appropriate distance away and yet not so far that it gave me the impression he didn't want to be there. So it was just the right distance for two acquaintances.

I propped my arm up on my leg and sat the side of my face in my open hand, turning to look at him. "It's a beautiful night," I mused, still enjoying the breeze. "Is that why you were sitting outside of the cafe before when I saw you?"

"Hmm. Yeah. Well, that and I just felt like I needed some fresh air. I know he means well, but sometimes Howard. . ."

"Can be a bit much?" I finished with an amused smile. "Is that why you wanted to go for a walk? You needed a little escape?"

He leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees. "No. I'm used to Howard. I just. . .wanted to talk to you."

His admission surprised me. And yet it kind of bolstered my courage and so I decided to just go ahead and put myself out there. "We never got to really have a proper introduction so. . ." I freed my hand from holding up my head and held it out to Cam. "I'm Lillian. It's nice to meet you."

I dare say I amused him, if the glint in his eye meant something. "It's. . .It's nice to meet you, Lillian. I'm Cam."

He put his hand in mine and shook it. And I tried not to dwell on how much I was enjoying that. "How about we be friends?"

His eyebrows disappeared somewhere between his bangs and his hat. It was like we were six years old on the playground or something. And yet he indulged me and went along with it. "Sure. Let's be friends."


	5. Being Nosy and Moving Towns

**Author's Note: **Lillian's about to get a little nosy. I wonder how many people would have done the same thing in her position, lol! Hit me up in a review if you have something to say about Lillian's actions versus your own. :) I hope you enjoy the chapter!

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So. . .I had officially made a new friend in Cam. I had spent more time talking to him later on that week and during the next. And I had definitely enjoyed that, getting to know Cam a little better. I'd even been able to attend Laney's birthday with there being zero weirdness between the two of us. It did get a little weird at one point, though, when Cam had been on one side of me and Ash had been on the other. Their friendship and brotherhood touched me, but both were taller than me and they'd been carrying on a conversation literally over my head and I felt kind of like I was either not there or literally in their way. The horrible thing was that I'd been standing there before either of them came over to where I was. I'd been planning on finding Laney and Georgia so I could join up with them, but then Howard had come and located me.

"Lillian, I'm afraid I left Laney's present upstairs. Would you please go up there and get it for me?"

"I'll be happy to do it." I know, I know. Poor me, trying to escape from being sandwiched between two attractive guys, right? I partake in sarcasm sometimes, you know.

"Are you sure? I can just go up there myself," Howard had said, his cheeks rosy from the happiness of the day. When I nodded, he continued. "Oh, you're such a darling! Alright. It should be sitting on my bed. If you can't find it, come get me and I'll go up there myself." With that said, he went to have a few words with Grady.

With another nod of my head, I hurried up the stairs and entered the pink room on the right. Howard's room was far more feminine than Laney's was. The first time Laney had asked me to come up there, I'd assumed that the pink room was hers. She'd poked her head out of her room wondering what was taking me so long and realized I'd mistaken Howard's room for hers. This time, I walked into the room knowing whose it was. I made my way over to his bed and I didn't see the present. No, rather, I saw a book open on his bed. I wondered what Howard had been reading. Maybe it was a recipe book or something that could help me improve my cooking and I could ask him to borrow it. I leaned over it and took a look.

"Oh my goddess," I mumbled as I realized what it was. It was. . .Howard's diary. "I should. . .get out of here. Yep. I should find Laney's present and go down the stairs."

Too bad the diary had been left open and I'd gotten a glimpse at the page. I didn't make out much, but I'd seen enough to know that he'd been writing about Cam. So I felt conflicted. I was beyond curious about what had been going through Howard's head concerning Cam. Yet I did know it was wrong to snoop in somebody's personal diary. I could remember how I'd done exactly that to my cousin Chelsea when we were younger. It's not like I'd gone looking for it. She'd forgotten to put it up and I'd accidentally come across it. And then I couldn't stop myself from reading some of it. She hadn't caught me, but I'd felt so consumed with guilt that I'd eventually fessed up.

B-But. . .'_Oh, I am such a bad person_,' I thought as curiosity got the better of me again and I hovered over the book.

It turned out that there wasn't just information about Cam in there, but Howard had written things about Ash as well. It was so interesting that I momentarily forgot that I was doing something sneaky and wrong. It wasn't until I heard Howard's voice calling up the stairs that I was snapped out of my little bubble.

"Lillian, honey, are you okay up there? Are you having trouble finding the present?"

I jumped back and looked over my shoulder. He was still downstairs, I reminded myself. I quickly turned the diary back to the page it had been on and glanced around the room. Well, he'd definitely been wrong. The present hadn't been on his bed. He'd left it on the table by his windows. I grabbed it and made my way back down the stairs. "Here it is," I told him, handing it over when I reached the last step. "It was on the table by the windows"

"Oh, silly me. Of course it was," he said with a strange twinkle in his eye. Oh no. Was it written all over my face? Did he know? Did he know that I'd let curiosity kill the cat and snooped in his diary? And. . .he wasn't mad? Wait a minute, why wouldn't he be mad? Surely he'd be mad if he knew. . .He patted me on the shoulder and hurried over to Laney while humming a happy tune. What had just happened there?

So Laney's birthday had come and gone. The animal festival had come and gone. Dogs were being judged that year. I'd lost, by the way, but I'd come in second place at least. Another cooking festival came and went. The season drew to a close and I'd finally had to stop and consider what Nori had said to me before. Should I stay in Bluebell or try out Konohana again? Ultimately, I'd decided something. I would go back to Konohana in autumn and see how that went, but I was about 99.9 percent positive that I would be spending both winter and spring in Bluebell. I didn't know quite yet. I was still working things out in my head. I really am an indecisive person so when I'm 99.9 percent you can't believe that it's actually going to stay 99.9 percent.

So I'd gone to Town Hall to inform Rutger of my decision. He'd looked rather crestfallen when he heard the news, but he'd understood and let me know that I was always welcome to move back to Bluebell. I'd felt strange, like I was somehow disappointing him. It reminded me of how I'd felt when I'd told Ina I was leaving Konohana before. Rutger had gone to inform Ina that I was coming and said he'd meet me at my farm to help me get ready to go. While he was doing what he was doing, I went around town and let everybody know what was going on. I was met with much of the same disappointment that had radiated from Rutger.

"You're leaving?!" Laney exclaimed when I caught up with her inside the cafe. She'd been making a pot of coffee. The water she'd been pouring into the top had ended up sloshing all over the place. "Oh, fiddlesticks," she mumbled as she realized the mess she'd made. She was always making up funny little substitutes for curse words.

"Yeah, I am. But I'll be back for winter and probably even spring. Besides, I'll still come to Bluebell a lot so it won't even really feel like I've left."

"But you'll be competing against us in the cooking festivals," Laney pointed out as she used a clean washcloth to wipe up the water she'd spilled.

"That's a good thing, though. Maybe now Bluebell will actually have a chance of winning." My joke hadn't even made her crack a smile. "Really, though, I'll be around. We should have lunch or something when I come to the cafe. Come on, what do you say?"

She finally did smile a little. "Alright. We'll have lunch. But don't forget. I know you get busy and all that."

"I won't forget," I assured her.

So I'd gone around town making various other promises such as tending to the horses with Georgia, spending time on the mountain with Eileen, and hanging out with Ash. My social calendar was filling up fast. The last stop I made was to see Cam. I don't know why I saved him for last, but I did. By that time, he'd already heard. Laney or Howard had probably made it a point to tell him.

"So you're leaving." He spoke in that voice I was coming to know better and better. And it was a statement rather than a question. He had his poker face on again, but I could hear his disappointment. It added on to the strange guilt I was already feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"I am," I confirmed. "I'll be back before you know it, though, and I'll be around town a bunch in the meantime."

"You don't have to placate me," he said before he turned his back on me.

Oh no. Oh no. _Oh no_. He was turning his back on me? It had been a while since he'd done that and I didn't want it to happen again. I definitely did not want us to revert back to how it'd been before Flower Day. "Cam?"

He said something under his breath that I couldn't hear before he started working on something. I stood there curiously and patiently as he grabbed this and that, his movements steady and precise. When he was done, he turned back around. I didn't get a chance to say anything because he immediately held something out to me. It was a sunflower bouquet.

"I thought you might need some fresh flowers for your house in Konohana. Something to remember me by."

I let out a little gasp. "Oh my goddess, they're beautiful Cam! Thank you. I'll be happy to have them in my house," I said, in awe of his gift. I'd bought many bouquets from him before, but these were actually coming from _him_. And that meant a lot to me. "I'm not trying to placate you, though. I really will be around. I'm not completely leaving."

"Everybody leaves in the end," he mumbled. He looked down so far that I could barely see his eyes, sticking one hand in his pocket and tugging his hat down a little with the other.

"What was that?" I asked, unsure of whether or not I'd heard him correctly since it was such a strange thing to hear him say. I leaned over the table and made a concentrated effort to see his face better since he seemed intent on hiding it.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it," he said, giving me a small smile that didn't reach his eyes.

I had the feeling that there was a story there, but that he was definitely not up to telling it quite yet. And I wasn't about to pressure him since we were still building trust and confidence in each other. Therefore, I leaned back to my side of the table and let it drop for the time being.

"I know I've made a lot of promises to people today, but I _am_ a woman of my word and I promise I'll definitely be around. We can hang out by the river. Ooh, or maybe you could come to my farm in Konohana one day when you have the time. I'm thinking about growing some flowers and I was actually hoping you could give me some feedback and whatnot."

That seemed to get through to him. He gave me a nod of his head and his next smile was more sincere. "Okay. Sounds like a plan. What kind of flowers were you thinking of planting?"

Our conversation got better from there, less awkward and sad. By the time I walked away from him, things had gotten more or less back to normal. I still felt sad, though. I was walking by Jessica's Livestock and heading home when Ash called out to me. Before I even had a chance to look over in his direction properly, he hopped over the fence.

"Oh, hey. What's up, Ash?" I asked him. The next thing I knew, though, he was pulling me to him in a hug. I was in shock for a couple of seconds before I reached my arms up and hugged him back.

"Come back soon, okay?" he said softly, right by my ear.

"Y-Yeah. Sure. I said I would, right?" Ash was a lot stronger than I'd pegged him for. I mean, he did farm work so I knew he must have been strong. He just didn't really look it. I could literally feel his muscles now, though. The muscles in his back that my hands were resting on. The muscles in his arms which were wrapped around me. . .

He let go of me and took a step back. "Good luck over in Konohana."

"Thanks," I said right before I remembered something. "Take good care of Snow. Make sure she doesn't get out of hand. I'll be sure to come and visit her as well."

Just the other week, I'd been hanging out with Ash over by Grady's shop. We'd been watching the horses and Ash had mentioned a new sheep that had arrived over at their farm. Apparently the sheep, Snow, had been having a difficult time adjusting to the new surroundings. The next thing we knew, Snow was out and about, walking right by us. I'd managed to talk to her and coax her into going back home.

Ash laughed and gave me a thumbs up. "I've got Snow covered. She'll be happy to know you'll come see her, though."

I looked down at my watch and let out a little sigh. "I should be heading home now. I have packing to do and I don't want to hold Rutger up once he gets there. I'll see you all in a couple of days, okay?"

"Yeah. You go ahead and do what you have to do. See you then."

He hopped back over the fence and that was the end of the conversation. I worked as swiftly as I could, but I wasn't ready by the time Rutger made it. He helped me finish up, though, and he personally escorted me over to Konohana. I felt beyond sad as we started to pull away from my Bluebell farm. I felt so sad that I wanted to drink in every little detail from the flowers in the boxes underneath the front windows of my house to the barn and chicken coop that seemed so forlorn without my animals in them.

Rutger seemed to sense my sadness because he spent the entire trip over the mountain telling me sweet little stories from when him and Rose were young. After entering Konohana, Ina had taken over from there. The two mayors were nicer to each other than I'd expected and I hoped it wasn't just for my sake that they were keeping it civil.

After helping me get settled into the house and getting my animals adjusted, Ina had suggested I take the rest of the day off and just rest. That was a good suggestion since I spent the whole rest of the day wallowing in my own sadness and drowning my sorrows with a bottle of honey wine. Had I been this sad when I'd left Konohana before? If I had been, I couldn't remember. I just couldn't shake the feeling I had, though, like I was leaving something important behind. And it was weighing on me. I'd been about to pour myself another glass when I remembered that there was a perfect bouquet of beautiful sunflowers resting inside my rucksack. I sat the bottle back down and hurried over to my rucksack, opening it up and locating the flowers.

They were just as beautiful and I remembered them. I took them over to the basket sitting on the table next to my bookshelf. The house immediately looked brighter, happier. I felt a little better. Cam's flowers had been just the touch the place needed. My dog, Rufus, licked at my hand. I looked down at him and rubbed him behind his ears. "Welcome home, buddy," I told him. "Welcome home."


	6. A Certain Florist's Birthday

**Author's Note: **I just realized how long this chapter is. How did that happen? o_o I hope you like it!

cmm: I was kind of writing from experience since I was a nosy younger sibling, lol. So poor Lillian and Chelsea paid the price. *nods*

Cake-san: Awww, thanks for saying that! Here's another chapter. I'm glad you reviewed. :)

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When I'd read Howard's diary, I'd found out some things. Not only had I found out that Cam had left town and struck out on his own for a while, but I'd also found out that he had a fondness for spicy foods. The funny thing was that after writing about those spicy foods, it seemed Howard had added an additional line later on. He'd declared that even though it wasn't spicy, tom yum goong was Cam's absolute favorite. Even stranger was the fact that he'd also written down the recipe. _Awfully convenient_, I'd say. I was starting to wonder about Howard and that incident. . .

Anyway, after my day of wallowing in self-pity with wine, I'd spent the next day making up for that by getting my land ready for autumn and socializing with the good people of Konohana. Everybody had been so stoked that I'd moved back, which made me feel much better about my decision. Yun had asked that I make time soon to play with Ying, which probably meant that Rahi would be joining us. Dirk had reminded me about our plans to go to Yun's Tea House at some point. Sheng had suggested we go looking for pandas.

Between you and me, though, the only pandas I'd ever seen in Konohana were Sheng's outfit and Ying's stuffed toy. Oh, and Nori had invited me to chat with her and Reina one day when I wasn't too busy. Hopefully Reina and I would be able to get closer. Unlike Cam, she'd never given me a cold look or anything. She just seemed like a genuinely introverted person and I was sure we'd be good friends with time and patience. Therefore, my social calendar was filling up even more.

The day after that, though was the first day of autumn. And I had it on good authority that it was Cam's birthday. Not only was I heading back to Bluebell for the day, but I was not going to show up empty handed. It would be rude, wouldn't it, to not give the birthday boy a gift? So I'd figured I'd kill two birds with one stone. I'd work on a new recipe and since it was his favorite, it would double as his present from me. Furthermore, I knew full and well that Cam had insisted on not having a party. He typically didn't like to have such a fuss made over him by so many people. He'd told me so at Laney's party, a little while after my diary reading incident.

"You look about as pale as a ghost," he'd said in his soft tone, startling me since I hadn't seen or heard him coming.

"That's saying a lot since I think I have a tan right now," I'd said, laughing uneasily.

"Hey," he'd said, standing in front of me and getting a good look at my face. "Are you okay?"

I'd looked up into those green, green eyes of his and let him have a small smile. "Yeah. Don't worry about it." He'd raised an eyebrow, but appeared to decide on letting the issue drop. "So," I'd said, deciding to change the subject. "Is Howard going to throw another party on your birthday, too?"

Cam had visibly cringed. "Oh goddess, I hope not. No. I never want one and he _usually_ respects that wish. Not always, though. Hopefully he'll leave it be this year."

"Awwww. Are you at least going to let him make you a nice dinner? Even that will probably make him happy, you know."

"Well, yeah. I appreciate him going out of his way to do nice things for me. He's the closest thing I have to a father, so. . ." He cleared his throat awkwardly and shrugged. "I'm fine with a nice dinner. I just don't like having such a big fuss made over me by so many people like Laney does."

Ah, there I was learning things about him again. I always made sure to store any and all information he gave me away inside my head. "What's your ideal birthday, then? Like. . .picture your birthday ten years from now. What do you want it to be like?"

I'd caught him by surprise since his eyebrows disappeared under his hat. He leaned back against the table we were standing by and pondered my question, sticking his hands into his pockets as he did so. I waited patiently, wondering as I always did about what was going on in his head.

"Ten years?"

I'd nodded. "Ten years."

"Why not next year?"

"I don't know. I chose the number at random. Is it that hard of a question to answer?" I'd thought it was fairly straightforward myself. Then again, maybe I was pushing him too much. I didn't want to browbeat an answer out of him. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"No, it's okay. Just. . ." He left one hand in his pocket and brought the other to the back of his head as he usually did when he was confused or just thoughtful. "It's a little embarrassing, I suppose?" He let out a resigned sigh. "In _ten_ years I guess I can picture myself closing up the shop a little early and hurrying home. And hopefully I'll have a wife who is there. . .maybe a kid, who knows? And we'll just have a small celebration for the three of us. I _might_ could tolerate a cake as long as it's not chocolate. I'm not really a fan of sweets and especially not chocolate so. . ."

"Awww! Why is that embarrassing? I think it's adorable, actually," I told him, trying not to gush over the sweet little vision he had of his own personal future. In the meantime, I was making a mental note to myself to not ever give him anything that was chocolate.

Before I knew it, though, Cam pushed away from the table and headed in the direction opposite of me. I could have sworn I'd seen a trace of pink on his cheeks, though, before he ran off.

I shook my head to dispel the last of that memory. I had to focus on that tom yum goong I was making for his birthday, right? The last time I'd made fried rice for Georgia, she'd told me it was the best she'd tasted yet. So that made me optimistic. It hadn't been enough to give us the edge we'd needed to win the last cooking festival of summer, but still. . .

It was steadily growing later in the day. And I'd had a busy morning. The first thing I'd done was take care of my animals. Then I'd gone into town and taken on some requests. In fact, the requests that were made at the very beginning of the seasons were the ones I enjoyed the most because a lot of them were quite beneficial to me. Sheng had posted a request for upgrading one of my tools just as he'd said he would. So my watering can was now capable of holding more water, which would make watering crops less of a time consuming task. After that, I'd stepped into Gombe's shop as soon as it opened up to buy some seeds. From there, I'd returned to my farm and planted crops for the new season.

It seemed the weather had changed overnight. It had been kind of hot and humid when I'd gone to sleep on the last night of summer and when I'd woken up that morning it had been noticeably cooler and crisper. After I'd taken a shower and changed my clothes, I'd gotten to work on Cam's gift. And once that was finally done, I put the tom yum goong into some Tupperware and closed it up. I certainly didn't want it spilling out in my rucksack now did I? I just hoped that Cam would like it. I climbed up onto Levi and made my way off the farm. Kana had literally just come out of his shop and spotted me as I made it to the end of the driveway.

"Hey, Lillian," he said with a broad smile. It was chilly outside and while I did enjoy the view of his toned and tanned, tattooed arms, I was hoping he'd switch to shirts with sleeves soon so he wouldn't get sick. "Where are you off to?"

"Bluebell," I responded cheerfully, running my hand along Levi's mane. She made a happy little noise of agreement.

"Yeah? You just moved back and you're trotting all the way over there? What's up?" He bridged the gap between us and made his way over to stand close enough to pay Levi a little attention. There went that happy little noise again.

"Well it's my friend Cam's birthday today. And I cooked him something as a present," I informed him since he was so keen on knowing. I'd done the exact same thing for Kana a couple of weeks before when it was his birthday. Strangely enough, Cam wasn't the only person who was fond of spicy food. Before I knew it, Kana took a couple of steps back and brought his hand up. It was kind of covering up one eye and extended to his forehead. "Are you feeling okay, Kana?"

I'd always known Kana to be as healthy as a horse. No pun intended, by the way. I didn't want him to suddenly come down with something. Maybe the sudden change in weather was giving him a cold or something. It could also be his lack of sleeves. . .Before I could jump to anymore conclusions in my head, he put his hand on his hip and looked like he was back to normal. "I'm fine. It's just. . .I think I have a headache coming on or something."

"Oh," I paused a couple of seconds to collect my thoughts. "Maybe you should put something warm on and sit down with a nice hot cup of tea. That could help. A couple of acetaminophen would probably knock that headache right out."

"You're probably right. I was going to head over to Yun's Tea House, but maybe I'll just. . .just stay home and take it easy. I don't really feel up to it anymore. I'll catch you later, Lillian."

"Yeah, sure," I said as he turned around and headed straight for his door. He stopped when he got there and looked back at me before closing it behind him.

Something had felt weird there. I had no idea what was up, but something had definitely felt weird. I made a mental note to myself to check on him sometime soon to make sure he really was okay. I suddenly remembered the time and hurried on my way out of town and to the mountain. I actually loved autumn. I adored the changing leaves. They went from all being green to being such vibrant and warm colors like red and yellow and orange. I loved that. Riding over the mountain and gazing at the scenery made me feel so peaceful and content.

By the time I arrived in Bluebell, I was in my happy place. So I steadfastly avoided going and looking at my Bluebell farm. I didn't want it to bring me down and put me back into a little slump. So I advised Levi to trot straight by it although she had attempted to head that way. When I arrived in Bluebell, I saw Ash standing outside of his house.

"Lillian, hey! You're here," he said excitedly, hurrying over to me. "Have you come to spy for Konohana or something?"

I faked an injured look and put my hand on my chest. "Now that's something I'd expect to hear your mother say, Ash. You've cut me deep, my friend." We had ourselves a good little laugh over that for a minute.

"So what brings you to town?" he asked when our laughter died down.

"Oh you know, there's a birthday boy here who I thought I'd come see. Is he over at the cafe?"

Ash made a strange face for about half a second before giving me a carefree smile. "No, he's at the shop working despite what today is. I went over there to chat with him earlier and I'm going to see him later on. He may not like people making a fuss, but I'm his best friend. It's my right to pester him."

"Sounds like a good plan. What were you doing standing outside your front door, hmm?"

He put one hand on his hip and raised his other hand up to where he could rest his thumb on his chin. It was like he was confused about something. "Oh. Well I was over at Cam's shop and Cheryl dragged me away and told me we were going to play. But then we got over here and she said I had to wait until she was ready. And I don't know when that will be. So here I am."

As if on cue, Cheryl walked out the front door with all the commanding presence of a war general. She immediately spotted Ash and made her way up to him. "Hi, Lillian," she said, not forgetting her manners before dismissing me completely. "Ash, hurry up. I don't have much time and I came up with this super cool game! And I'm going to be mad if we run out of time before we can even play it."

She crossed her little arms over her chest and leaned her head to the side, giving him her sternest look. Yep, that kid meant business. I'd seen that look before. Not too long after I became friends with Ash, we'd been having a chat in the town square. Cheryl had appeared then wanting to play with Ash and I'd told him to go ahead and play with her. She'd made that look back then as well.

"Go have fun with Cheryl. I'll see you later, okay?" I assured him. He didn't even have a chance to respond. Cheryl's little face lit up and she grabbed him by the arm, dragging him away.

"As I live and breathe," Georgia drawled, standing at her fence. "Why, I've never seen anybody more wrapped around a little girl's finger than that man right there."

I chatted with Georgia for a while and visited my old pony before going to say hi to Grady. I gave him one of the tomatoes I had left over from my last summer harvest since I knew how much he liked them. I'd decided to leave Levi over by Georgia and let her keep an eye on her while I was in town. As I entered the town square, I was tempted to go over and check the request board. I just _knew_ that Eileen had posted another request for supplies so she could work more on opening up the tunnel. Someday that tunnel would be open and connect both towns. And that would certainly make my life a whole lot easier.

But then I spotted Cam standing there at his shop and I figured it was time I went over there to wish him a happy birthday. The request board could wait until later. I passed the flowerbed on my way and recalled how I'd gone there to hang out with Cam near the end of summer and we'd talked about flowers. That was usually Laney and Georgia's spot, but we'd had it all to ourselves that day.

He looked good and busy when I made it up there. He was so engrossed in his work that I had to actually speak in order to get his attention. "What are you up to?"

He glanced up at me before looking back down at what he was doing. "Work. Eileen came and asked me to make some perfume for her. But then she ran off and said she had something to do and would be back later. At any rate, I plan on having it done and ready."

I stood there quietly and watched as he worked, fascinated just as I always was by the process it took for him to make the perfume. He was just as caring, efficient, and confident as he usually was when he was preparing a bouquet or even simply preparing his flowers to be sold. He was surefooted when it came to his profession. When the perfume was done, he poured the liquid into the bottle and didn't even spill a single drop. Just when he was getting ready to close the top over it, I said "Hold on. Can I smell?"

He gave me that neutral, blank look of his and shrugged. "Sure."

Cam held the bottle out to me and I leaned over to smell it, holding my hair back so it wouldn't fall in my way. "Oh wow, Cam. That's such a pretty scent!" I pulled back to my side of the table. Cam cleared his throat a couple of times as he closed the bottle up.

"Thanks, I'm glad you like it. You should buy some. I think the scent would be nice on you," he told me as he sat the perfume aside, where it would stay until Eileen finally came to retrieve it. "And I'm not just saying that to make a sale, in case you were wondering that."

"The thought never crossed my mind!" Besides, he didn't strike me as the type to be so proactive, although being proactive would probably benefit his business. "Perhaps I _will _buy some soon. I'm here for something else today, though, and I think you know what that is." He looked at me expectantly. I couldn't tell if he actually had no idea what I came for or if he was just pretending not to. "Happy birthday! You've made it to twenty-three."

"Oh. Yeah, umm. . .You remembered."

"You say that like you expected me to forget. I didn't bump my head and get amnesia, I just moved across the mountain."

"I didn't think that y. . ." he sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm not always the best when it comes to expressing myself. I didn't mean for it to come out that way. Anyway, thanks."

"I brought something for you. You know, since it's your birthday and all."

I sat my bag down on the table, careful not to get it too close to the flowers he was selling for the day. He looked straight down at my rucksack. I guessed that he was probably trying to calculate the exact distance between my bag and those flowers, wondering what the chances were that it would fall over and crush them. I scooted it just a little farther away before opening it up and pulling the container of food out. Cam watched me with a curious expression, probably wondering what I was up to. I closed my rucksack up and sat it on the ground before making my way around the table so I could stand before him.

"Here you go. I hope you like it," I said as I held it out to him.

Cam took it from my hands and carefully opened it up. He stared down at it curiously for a few seconds before sniffing it. His expression changed in two seconds flat. "Isn't that tom yum goong? What? It's for me?" I nodded and he immediately continued. "Thank you so much. That's my favorite!" The smile he gave me made my heart do that boom-clap thing again for some reason. It was the biggest smile I'd seen from him since we started being friends.

"You're welcome. I hope it tastes good. I know I'm not the world's best cook, but Georgia and Pierre are still alive, so. . ."

"I'm sure it'll taste great. Besides, I think it's the thought that counts. . ." That was basically the same thing Kana had told me on his birthday. I didn't know if I should feel happy they were cutting me such slack or if I should feel upset that they were doing it.

Well, he was certainly doing a good job of expressing himself at the moment. I stood there kind of awkwardly for about thirty seconds before I cleared my throat and smiled at him. "Well, I'm happy you're happy and all. I hope you have a good birthday. I should probably be going. I mean, you _are _technically working and I still need to check the request board and get home before it starts getting dark."

"Okay," he spoke with the smile still in place. "I'll see you around another time. Thanks again, though."

I started walking away and realized my back felt awfully light. And then I realized I'd sat my rucksack on the ground in front of the table. I doubled back and scooped it up, putting my arms in the straps and making sure it was secure. I gave Cam a final parting wave and made my way over to the request board.


	7. A Couple of Konohana Boys

**Author's Note:** I just finished binge-reading The Gentlemen's Alliance Cross. Whenever I finish reading something really great that I love, I feel hollow and sad inside. So I needed some happiness. So I've brought a new chapter! Read. Review. Enjoy~! :)

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I was sitting on the edge of Hiro's bed and watching as he sat at his desk. Ayame had instructed him to do some studying so he was reading one of the books his father had given him. In fact, the majority of the books lining his shelves had come from his father.

"All I'm saying is that I really don't need it. You know?"

Hiro let out a sigh and carefully pushed his book away. He shifted in his chair so he could look back at me without straining himself. "A hearty breakfast is indeed the most important meal to be consumed. You work a rather strenuous job and without proper sustenance, you risk passing out."

"I'm fine, really. A little coffee and I'm good to go for a large chunk of the day." That apparently didn't assure him because he squinted his eyes a little and started waving his finger at me.

"Furthermore, an overabundance of caffeine consumption can be a hindrance to your health." I'd managed to make him angry. He really was adorable when he was angry. He had a really youthful face so he was a cutie pie in general. The two of us had bonded over cooking. In fact, he'd recommended a really helpful cookbook to me at Town Hall at one point. Long story short, I felt rather affectionate toward the doctor-in-training.

I stood up and walked over to where he was sitting, patting him on top of the head. He blushed a little, but I could tell that his anger was dissipating. "I'm sorry, okay? I'll have breakfast tomorrow, I promise. But I can't cut out the coffee. Try not to worry so much, alright?"

He looked to the right and poked at his chin as he considered that. "Alright. Please make an attempt to take more proper care of yourself, though. I may not yet be a doctor, but I do feel responsible for your well-being."

"I know. And you're a total sweetheart for that, really. But if you wake up _really _early one of these mornings with me standing over you holding a plate of french toast and poking your cheek then you should know you brought it on yourself."

"Oh no. Please don't wake me early from my slumber. I would be most perturbed because of that."

It wasn't the first time we'd had a conversation like that one. He'd definitely given me the breakfast lecture before. But I was just so busy in the mornings. Just as Jessica would always tell me, mornings were usually the busiest part of the day on farms. Howard _had_ given me a good recipe for an omelet, though, so I could always try that out. It shouldn't take that long, either.

I was kind of being a bit of a hypocrite. There I was not doing something as simple as eating breakfast and I had the nerve to expect Kana to wear sleeves. Both of us could get sick. And I was the pot calling the kettle black.

It was late by the time I'd emerged from the clinic and I didn't want to hold up the rest of Ayame and Hiro's night. Besides, he still had to finish studying and cook something for dinner. Cooking. . .cooking. Now why did that ring a bell in my head? Oh yeah! The cooking festival! That was tomorrow.

Oh, but what was the category going to be? As I walked home, I made a concentrated effort to remember. I did not want to have to resort to looking at my calendar when I got home. Of course, I was so deep into my thoughts that I didn't even notice when I bumped into something. Whatever it was, it was incredibly solid and I fell straight back. At the last second, a pair of strong arms reached out and caught me.

"Whoa, there. Are you okay?"

I let out a sigh of relief. It was Kana! Kana had saved me from hitting the ground and ending up being sore in the morning. Thank goodness. I looked up into those dark eyes of his that were just barely visible in the moonlight and gave him a half-smile. "Yeah. I am. I'm so sorry I bumped into you! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"Don't worry about it," he said as he steadied me on my feet and started walking toward his house. I assumed he'd just made it out of the pasture area when I'd gone and walked into him. He'd probably just been in the barn checking on on Hayate or something.

"Hey, wait," I said as I jogged to catch up with him. "Kana, I wanted to talk to you."

He stopped and let out a sigh. He even looked a little irritated at me, which I didn't normally see from him. "I don't really feel like talking to you today, Lillian."

Wow. That took me by surprise. I was a little taken aback. He'd never acted like that before. I stood there shifting from one foot to the other and bit at my bottom lip as I considered his words. I didn't know what I'd done to upset him. So I did the only thing I could do even though I was confused as to why I felt I needed to do it. "I'm. . .I'm sorry. I'll go home, then. I'll see you around some other time. Uh. . .goodnight, Kana."

The next thing I knew, he was jogging backwards in front of me. I paused and raised an eyebrow at him and he came to a stop. "Wait. It was nothing. Just something that was bugging me, but it's okay now." And then, out of nowhere, "Hey, would you like to come over to my house for a little bit?"

I looked down at my watch and then up at his apologetic face and shrugged. And that was when I noticed. . . "You're wearing sleeves," I said, pointing at one of his arms. "Well. I guess that means I have no excuse not to eat breakfast now. . ."

"Wait, what?" he asked, looking at me in a thoroughly confused way since he had no way of knowing how him wearing sleeves and me eating breakfast could possibly be connected.

"Nothing, nothing," I told him with an amused little laugh.

"So was that a yes or a no?"

"Hmm? To what?" I queried.

"You. Me. My house. You visiting me at my house for a little while?"

"Oh! Oh yeah, you did just ask me that. Alright. I'll come over for a bit."

He gave me a relieved little smile and led the way. He held the door open and shut it behind me. It was warm and cozy in there. One of Kana's dogs ran up to me before wagging its tail and barking to get my attention. I crouched down to pet him for a while before Kana interrupted. "Come on, you little straggler. It's time you got settled down for the night." Kana whistled and the dog immediately followed behind him to join all the rest of the animals.

I stood there waiting for him to get back and noticed something out the corner of my eye. Wow. It was like. . .a statue. It was a horse statue. Had that always been there and I just never noticed it before? I did have a tendency to look over things sometimes, so that was probably the case. I crept closer and leaned in to get a better look. When I heard footsteps I suddenly jumped back and saw Kana standing there.

"Whoa, you scared me," I said, putting a hand against my chest..

"Huh? What's up, Lillian?" he said, coming out the doorway and over to where I was. He didn't have far to walk.

"Well I was just taking a look at this statue and I didn't hear you come back in the room, so. . ." I said, feeling a little silly since he was the only other person in the house to be making any noise behind me. "Anyway, I've never noticed this statue before so I was over here taking a look at it." I had a very artistic background so I was kind of in awe of the detail that went into it. I leaned back in to take another close look at it.

"Ah, yeah. My dad made that wooden horse. Isn't it awesome?" he asked with a happy smile.

"I'd definitely say yeah to that. It's kinda amazing, you know? I mean, look at all these little details. What kind of tools did he use?"

"Whoa, whoa. I was really young when he made that so I don't really remember." He stopped talking and looked off into space for a minute before laughing.

"What's so funny?"

He smiled at his own thoughts and got close to the statue, running his hand across it fondly. "I was just thinking about something. As a kid, I used to climb on that statue and pretend to ride. My dad would get mad."

"I bet," I told him with a shake of my head. "I don't think you've ever mentioned him before, though. Your dad, that is."

He looked surprised as he stopped to think about that. After about a minute of mentally combing through our various conversations, he apparently decided I was right. "Yeah? Well, my dad loves horses. He travels all over the world to find good horses." He rested a finger on his chin and looked a little worried. "It's actually been a long time since I've heard from him."

"Really? Wow. I hope that he sends you a letter soon or something." It was kind of unfathomable to me since I was in such constant contact with my own father. I felt sorry for Kana. Especially since I knew he'd lost his mother at an even younger age than I did.

"Knowing my dad, I'm sure he's doing just fine. But. . .I can't help worrying some."

"Well, since you both love horses I guess it's safe to say that you two are alike, huh? And if he's anything like you then I'm sure he's doing fine!"

And just like that, he was back to his normally happy self. "Yeah, you're right! I'm sure he's fine! And he'll come home with the best horse in the world someday soon. Anyway, getting all worried about stuff isn't my style."

I nodded my head and drew in a breath. "You're right, it's not. Just keep the positive thoughts going and I'm sure he'll get in touch someday soon."

That seemed to perk him up even more and for that I was happy. I didn't like seeing him having to worry over something like that. "You're really nice to talk to, Lillian. When you smile and say he's fine. . .I feel like, yeah, he must be fine. I'm totally reassured."

I looked down at the floor as I felt my face growing a little hot. Hearing that he had such confidence in my words was quite flattering. And then the way he'd looked at me when he said it. . .I looked up and saw him rubbing the back of his head. And he was blushing, too. "Um, so, like. . .What I'm trying to say is. . ."

I felt like I must have a huge question mark hovering over my head right then because I didn't know where he was going with his words. "Yeah?"

"I mean. . .It's like this, Lillian! Hayate really wants to see you again. So I hope you'll come by soon."

I patted his shoulder and grinned at that. "Of course. I want to see Hayate again, too. And you be sure to tell her I'll bring another treat, okay?"

"Sure, I'll do that. Well, I'll see you later, Lillian. And. . .thanks!"

"You're welcome," I told him as I headed toward the door. "I'll catch you at the cooking festival tomorrow." And then with a wave I showed myself out. I had a feeling that something had happened in there. I wasn't sure what, though, and I was definitely confused.

So. . .I'd gone back to the farm. I'd done a quick check of every single animal to make sure all was well, and then I'd decided to just call it a night. I had a lot to accomplish the following morning and I wanted to be on top of my game so I could get it all done.

So when I awoke bright and early the next morning, I hopped out of bed and hurried out of my bedroom so I could get started. I noticed that my dog, Rufus, had taken to following me around like. . .everywhere I went. And I didn't mind that since I was such an animal person and everything. My cat Penelo, though. . .I mean, she obviously accepted me as her owner, but she had yet to warm up to me to the degree that Rufus had. I mean, I'd had her longer than my other dog, Night, and even he liked me more than she did. I'd even named her after my grandma! Well, kind of. Penelo, Penelope. Close enough!

Since I'd assured Hiro I'd actually eat some breakfast for once, I located the recipe Howard had written down for me and got onto making that omelet. And of course, after I sat the plate down on my table, I fixed myself a nice hot cup of coffee. Both of my parents had been coffee drinkers for as long as I could remember. My mom probably loved it more than my dad ever did, but the fact of the matter was I'd been drinking it since I was like. . .eleven. Well, there were a couple of years there that I didn't drink coffee. My grandma used to say that drinking coffee at a young age would stunt my growth. And I did _not_ want Chelsea getting taller than me. Therefore, I stopped drinking coffee for a couple of years. And I'd drank milk as often as I could. During the summers when we worked on the family farm, it was fresh from the cow milk and Chelsea wasn't big on milk unless there was chocolate involved so I had hoped that would give me the edge I needed. It hadn't, by the way. Once I accepted she was going to always be taller than me, I said forget my self-imposed caffeine ban and welcomed coffee back like it was an old friend.

After I had properly nourished myself, I looked around and realized my pets were long gone by then, already outside and doing their job. So I felt it was definitely time that I got on with the rest of my morning. My livestock were in high spirits and it took me no time at all to get them squared away. I then turned my attention to my crops. Staring at where I had planted the flower seeds I'd gotten from Cam, I wondered if they were going to turn out as well as I'd hoped. He had yet to come to Konohana to check on them, but there wasn't really anything to check yet, so. . .I finished up my watering and went inside to get cleaned up and prepare for the festival.

The theme this time, according to my calendar which I had ultimately resorted to checking, was salad. That was a deceptively simple theme. Sure, it was salad, but I was going to put just as much effort into that salad as I would a main dish gosh darn it! I had a feeling. I just had a feeling, you know? Like. . .I felt like today was my day. Who knows, maybe it was the breakfast that made me feel that way. Perhaps it was just the power of positive thinking. Still, though, I felt like all my hard work was finally about to come to fruition.

'_Look out cooking festival, here I come_,' I thought as I left the bathroom squeaky clean and hurried to the kitchen to prepare a salad dish that would knock Pierre's socks off.


	8. Music to Everybody's Ears

cmm: Welllllll, truth be told I'm biased, too! :) I have such interesting plans for both Cam _and_ Kana, though. And my plans start during the next two chapters!

* * *

The first time I'd ever watched an _actual_ musician play in front of me had been back in high school. There was some kind of school function going on that night, but my friends were all hanging out in the band room. I'd made my way in there and arrived just in time to see everybody gathered around one person. He had this beautiful olive skin tone and dark, lovely hair. And he was holding a guitar. I can't remember what song he played. All I know is that when he played that instrument of his, I felt something I'd never felt before. And I have no name for that feeling. All I can say is that it was an amazing experience and I was genuinely sad when he had finished.

I hadn't known exactly what to expect when it came to the Music Festival, though. Mikhail had a violin, not a guitar. But I had felt excited just thinking about it. Did it really matter what instrument it was as long as the musician was skilled and the music was good? I tended to tune the radio to music stations in the morning after checking on the weather for the day.

So I'd stood there in the front row between Rahi and Ayame, waiting patiently for the festival to begin. I had only met Mikhail a few days before. Ina had come to my house that morning right after I finished eating breakfast. Yeah, I started making breakfast an everyday thing, much to Hiro's delight. The victory I'd helped Konohana gain over Bluebell had convinced me that having breakfast was a sign of good things to come in my day. And since I was slightly superstitious, I didn't want to break the chain of positive momentum.

Anyway, Ina had knocked on my door and after I gave permission she strolled in. Behind her, there had been a white haired stranger who peered at me from behind a pair of glasses. He'd seemed pleasant enough during our brief conversation and I wished him luck during his time in Konohana.

Now, it was kind of like everybody in the room was holding their breath, anticipating what was to come next. Ina stood before us all and made a brief introduction for Mikhail and the pianist Helena who would be accompanying him. With a little prompting from Ina, the two musicians took their places and prepared to begin. After a few polite words, Mikhail held his violin before him and the pair of them began. I had no idea what that song was, but it was something elegant, a little whimsical, and definitely beautiful.

Everybody in the audience was so completely silent as they listened to the music, absolutely transfixed because of the melody. When the song finally came to an end, I tried to hang onto the feelings the music inspired in me for just a little longer. We all stood there quietly for a few moments before we all broke out into an applause full of enthusiasm.

Yun rubbed her delicate hands together with a bright smile. "This song is so relaxing. . .It's perfect for the season!"

"What!? That's it? It's over already!?" Sheng called out. I turned around to get a look at him since he was standing somewhere behind me. I must say my feelings mirrored his. I found myself wishing that the music could have lasted a little longer. But then he hit us with "I was having such a good nap!" Okay, perhaps Sheng and I were not of the same mind after all. . .

Hiro, who was standing next to Sheng, saw the look of disapproval Ina was shooting the blacksmith so he was inching his way out of the line of fire. I held my hand out to him and when he took it, I tugged him over to space between me and Ayame.

"So what did you think about the music, Hiro?" I asked him once he was safe and sound.

"Hm." He thought about that for about a second before putting his hand on his chest and smiling brightly. "Maybe we could use the soothing qualities of music at the clinic. . .Please excuse me for a while, Lillian. I will speak with you later."

That being said, he turned his attention to Ayame to discuss the possibility of such a thing happening. Ina, I noticed, had let Sheng off the hook and she was looking pretty cheerful as she addressed the violinist. "That was just splendid! What wonderful music! Thank you very much for playing for us, Mikhail."

"Really, it was my pleasure," he said as he gave Ina a respectful bow. That only upped her good mood.

"Let's have another round of applause for Mikhail!" she called out.

Everybody started clapping enthusiastically again and after a few seconds, Mikhail held his hand up. When we fell silent he said "Thank you, everybody. I'm so pleased you enjoyed it. But I couldn't have done it without Helena so how about a round of applause for her as well?"

Helena stood up with color in her cheeks and gave a little curtsy as everybody turned their eyes on her and applauded more. After that, everybody chatted happily among themselves. A few people surrounded Mikhail and Helena to discuss the song that had been played. I stood back and took it all in, enjoying being surrounded by so many happy people.

Nori came over, pulling Reina along behind her, and found me. Reina let out a woeful sigh when they came to a stop before me. She wrapped her arms around herself and looked down at the floor before giving me a look that pinned me to the spot.

"Hey you two. Uh, what's up?" I asked, looking from Reina to Nori and back again. From the look Reina was giving me, I had a feeling she had something on her mind and that Nori was just along for the ride, so to speak.

"_Well_, Reina had a question to ask you and. . ."

"I'd like to come over to your farm soon," Reina said, cutting Nori off mid-sentence.

I stood there with my mouth hanging open a little from surprise. Reina wanted to come to my farm? I wouldn't be surprised if Nori wanted to come over, but Reina. . .I'd recently come to the realization that aside from being naturally reserved, Reina also had a tendency to get so caught up in her plants and research that everything else around her seemed to just. . .fade away. So people shouldn't take her preoccupation personally. And yes, she admittedly found more solace in being around plants than people, but that didn't mean she was opposed to actual human company. Still, though, I was surprised.

"Uh, um. . .yeah. I mean, of course. I'd be happy to have you!" I told her cheerily once I recovered from my shock. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Nori poked Reina in the side and she let out another sigh. "I want to look at your crops and then cross-reference them with everybody else's to see if there are any abnormal variations or genetic mutations."

"And I wanted to come along so I could hang out with you two, if you don't mind. If it's too much trouble, though, I don't want to get in the way."

"Both of you are more than welcome. I'll even make tea and we can sit down and chat about plants. How's that sound?"

Reina glanced over at Nori for a second before settling her gaze on me. She put her arms behind her back and the corners of her lips lifted up in a smile. "That sounds nice. Thank you, Lillian. I'm going to go fill my uncle in on our plans." After saying that, she strolled away to hunt Mako down.

"What a lovely surprise," I told Nori when it was just the two of us left in the conversation.

"Right? It was completely her idea. I'm sure she really does want to take a look at your crops, but I also think she just really wanted to hang out with you," Nori confided as we went over to sit on the stage. She tucked her legs neatly at her side. I let mine dangle and swung them back and forth from left to right.

Whenever I found something interesting up in the mountains, I liked to save it to take to Reina. I had no idea what she did with the assortment of mushrooms and flowers, but I was sure she put them to use in her research somehow. I'd felt like we were growing closer because of this and becoming better friends. Now I had my proof that my efforts were succeeding. I knew that Reina was one of those people who was probably fine being on their own. But I just wanted her to know that along with Nori, I could be one of those people who showed her it didn't always have to be that way.

I told Nori that they were welcome to stop by whatever morning worked the best for them since I would probably be home anyway. I usually didn't have time to leave my farm until late morning or early afternoon. I was having to balance my farm work with visits around both towns. My farm work came first and foremost in the morning. After that was done, that was when I went out to socialize and take requests.

"I've returned." Hiro declared, coming to a stop before us. "Hopefully I have not intruded upon something." I assumed he was done chatting with Ayame about the possibility of incorporating music into their clinic work. I scooted over and patted the spot between me and Nori, which he accepted. The three of us had a nice conversation, but eventually everybody started to disperse and return to their homes for the day.

I was one of the last ones leaving and noticed Mikhail near the stage. He was very carefully putting his violin back in its case. He looked up when he heard my footsteps approaching. "Hello," he said quite politely.

"Hi. I just wanted to tell you that the music was beautiful. I very much enjoyed it."

He gave me a pleased smile as he closed up the case and snapped it shut. "Thank you, Lillian. I'm so glad you enjoyed it. I hope you will come to the music festival again next year."

"I'll mark it on my calendar," I told him before we filed out of the room together. After a quick goodbye, I headed out of the town hall and he headed to his room. Yeah, he seemed like a nice enough guy. And he made the most beautiful music. I spent a grand total of one year in band back in the day and I hadn't played the clarinet in forever. I'd say he definitely had me beat on the music front.

Since I had made so many promises to people in each town, I was steadily working my way through them when I found the time between my farm work and various requests. So since it was getting late in the day and nobody was about to go to work, I thought I would fulfill a promise I had made to Yun. She had asked me to find the time to play with Ying and I actually hadn't done so yet.

It's not that I didn't want to. It was just that whenever I wasn't busy and came into town I saw Ying and Rahi playing little games of their own together and I hadn't wanted to intrude on that. And then whenever I was on my way through town and saw that she was unoccupied, I was usually busy and in the midst of fulfilling a request or two. Or three.

I made my way to Yun's Tea House and poked my head in. Yun was wiping an already spotless table while humming a lovely little tune. It didn't take long for her to notice me in the doorway. "Ah, Lillian, dear. That was such a wonderful festival, wasn't it? So, what brings you by?"

"It was wonderful," I agreed. "And I came to ask you something. Do you think Ying would enjoy a game of hide and seek? It's a little on the warm side for autumn today so I thought we could have some fun."

She stopped mid-wipe and her eyes lit up as she considered my question. "Hide and seek, you say? Why, I'm not sure if she's even played it before." She turned and walked to the doorway I knew led to the bedroom they shared. "Ying, dear, would you come out here? Lillian wants to see you."

A few seconds later, Ying emerged with her beloved stuffed panda held gently yet tightly in her arms. ". . .Hello," she said in her shy, sweet way. She really was a gentle little soul and I enjoyed bringing her pancakes and seeing her little face light up.

I crouched down in front of her so I could see her at eye level, dangling my hands between my bent knees. "Ying, would you like to come with me and play a game of hide and seek?"

"Hide and seek?" she asked with a questioning look as she stared at me with those cautious eyes of hers.

"Mmm-hmm. It's a game where people hide while one person closes their eyes and counts to a certain number. That person is _it_. And then when time's up, that person goes to find the ones who are hiding. Whoever is caught first is the next person to be it. At least I _think_ those are the rules. I haven't played it in a long time so I can't be sure. . ."

Her mouth rounded in an 'o' as she took that information in. "That sounds fun," she said, smiling as she got more and more into the idea of the game.

"Yeah? Do you wanna play?"

She gave me three swift nods of her head. Then she hugged her panda tighter and looked down. "Can. . .Can Rahi play, too?"

I smiled as I poked her on the nose affectionately. "Of course. It wouldn't be as much fun without him now would it?"

That was all Ying needed to hear before she took off to find Rahi and invite him to take part in the game. Strangely enough, news of the game seemed to spread like wildfire throughout the town. I was standing outside the tea house when Ayame walked up to me.

"A game of hide and seek, huh? It sounds like you kiddos are going to have a good time."

"I think we are. Yun and Ying have talked about how the air here is so much better for Ying than where her parents live. So I thought it'd be nice for her to get out and get some of that fresh air."

Ayame gave me a knowing grin. "Lillian, I can read you like a book. Part of you wanted an excuse to play hide and seek like you were a child again too, right?"

I raised an eyebrow as I considered that question. Then I raised the other when I realized she was right. I loved having the chance to have that kind of fun again through Ying and Rahi. Ayame must have sensed that she was correct because she walked away with her laughter ringing in my ears.

Mako came to a stop next to me and watched her as she walked away, a wistful look on his face. Mako had actually been much easier for me to get close to than Reina. Back during my summers spent on the family farm, I'd taken care of the animals and I'd tended to actual food crops, but I'd never grown flowers. That was why I wanted Cam's input. Another thing I'd never done was grow a tree. I wasn't at a point yet where I was ready to grow fruit trees, but I had an entire notebook full of notes that I had taken during my various discussions with Mako. Whenever I did start growing those trees, I felt I would be ready thanks to all of his advice.

He was kind of brusque and had a tendency to say things that might imply you were bothering him, but I always thought he had kind eyes so I could tell right away what a big softie he was underneath that tough exterior of his. And I also knew he had a soft spot for Ayame in particular. When he saw me watching him watch Ayame, he kind of just. . .grunted in my general direction and walked away.

And that left me with a very amused smile on my face.


	9. Hide and Seek

**Author's Note:** I'm getting excited! My plans are beginning to unfold a little. ^_^ Mwahaha! Next update should come Sunday or Monday. I'm not sure which yet.

* * *

It seemed that I wasn't the only adult in town who wanted a chance to relive their childhood. Before I knew it, Gombe, Nori, Hiro, Kana, Dirk, and even Mako had said they wanted to join in. Rahi had tried to convince Ina to take part, but she'd informed him that as the mayor she would be best suited to oversee the game and make sure it was running smoothly. Gombe, who would never pass up the chance to play a game, volunteered to be 'it' first.

Everybody had agreed that hiding inside buildings was against the rules and nobody was to go past the town gate. Also, my entire farm was off limits. Other than that, they could hide where they wanted. We all started at the road between my farm and Dirk's house. As soon as Gombe closed his eyes and started counting, we all took off running and left him there. It was absolute chaos in a fun way as everybody rushed by each other trying to find a decent place to hide.

I stood there kind of at a loss for a few seconds until I heard Gombe say "Ready or not, here I come!"

That was when I made a mad dash for the trees to the left of Raul's shop. I hid behind a tree and peeked out as Gombe practically skipped his way through the town with absolute glee. I saw him make his way toward the south end of town. Not too long after, I heard surprised screams that sounded like they belonged to Nori and Hiro. Gombe skipped into my line of vision again. Something caught his eye and he headed off toward the tea house. Soon after, I heard more screams and then delighted laughter. It sounded like Ying and Rahi were having fun!

Gombe then took off running at full speed toward the area where he'd originally started, looking to see if he'd missed somebody there. It was quiet for a long while after that and I had absolutely no idea where Gombe was. I didn't know who all had been caught aside from the ones I heard before. And I started to wonder if the game had ended and everybody had forgotten about me. But then. . .I peeked out from behind the tree and saw Gombe standing right there in front of the path that led to the clinic! Just as I was ducking back behind the tree, he looked over in my direction. And I must not have ducked quickly enough because I could hear his footsteps heading over my way.

Perhaps he'd just seen movement out the corner of his eye, but it was enough to make him curious enough to investigate. I squeezed myself against the back of the tree trunk with my heart beating so fast in my chest! And then. . .and then. . .there was the sound of a twig or something snapping somewhere. I could hear Gombe take off skip-running in that direction. I let out a sigh of relief, but realized I'd have to relocate because he was on to my location now. Taking a wary look out from behind the tree, I didn't see him anywhere. I took off running and swiftly jumped over the hedge that separated the area of Raul's shop from Ayame's clinic and I hid behind Ayame's hedge. Peeking over it, I still didn't see Gombe so I crept over to the other, smaller hedge in front of the clinic.

Just then, Gombe's footsteps resurfaced. "Lillian, Lillian? Where could you be?" he said in a sing-song, giddy voice. I could hear him moving toward the trees I'd been behind before. Once he realized I wasn't there, it wouldn't take him long to investigate behind those hedges. So while his back was turned, I stealthily hurried away from the hedge I was behind. Any second now he would be turning his head and I had to find cover fast! So I. . .I. . .I literally dived behind the request board! That's right. There was a small space between the request board and the hedge in front of the town hall that I hadn't even noticed before. Apparently I wasn't the only person to consider that location, though, because when I dived behind the request board I managed to dive right into Kana.

"Oomph!" he let out a gust of breath as I collided with him.

"Oh my goddess! Kana, I am so sorry!" I whispered as he sat back up and rubbed the back of his head.

"It's okay," he assured me in a whisper of his own.

We heard Gombe's footsteps then and he brought a finger up against his lips, signaling that I should be extra quiet. The footsteps were nearby, but they soon receded off toward Gombe's home. When he felt the coast was clear, Kana said quietly "So, hide and seek, huh? What made you think of this game?"

"_Well_," I whispered, suddenly feeling rather nostalgic. "I played this game with the neighborhood kids back when I was little. I remember this one time we played when it was dark and I climbed on top of my dad's van to see if I could spot anybody. There was a kid up on the roof of a house! So I started climbing down from the van, but I fell and cut my leg really badly on something sharp. I still have the scar."

"Wow. I never knew this game could be so dangerous," he joked.

"I know, right? Just don't tell Ina or Yun about that story or. . ."

I stopped talking when I thought I might have heard something. Kana fell completely silent, too. We sat there for about two and a half minutes and the sound was nowhere to be heard. I'd thought I heard the sound come from closer to the town hall entrance so I leaned over Kana where he was sitting so I could take a peek out.

"W-What are you doing?" he said in a very low voice as I leaned across him and contorted my body a little strangely to get past him.

"I'm taking a peek," I replied as I maneuvered a hand here and a knee there and very slowly looked out from behind the request board. I saw nothing. "The coast is clear."

"Uh, Lillian?" he kind of croaked.

"What?" I asked as I looked back at him. And I just then realized just how awkward of a position we were both in because of me. I had used my legs to propel me up just a little with one hand on Kana's shoulder and the other grasping the edge of the back of the board. But it was the fact that my torso was turned toward Kana and my chest was kind of all up in his face that was the real problem. I immediately blushed and shrank back to my original spot.

"I didn't mean. . .I'm," I squeaked before I let out a quiet sigh. "I'm sorry." I felt so embarrassed that I wanted to put a bag over my head so nobody would ever see my face again.

"It was great," he assured me more loudly than the current game of hide and seek allowed. "I-I mean, everything's great. You're fine. I mean, _it's_ fine and. . ."

Just then we each felt a hand clasp our shoulders. We looked up and saw Gombe leaning all the way over the hedge to behind the request board.

"I finally found you two," he said quite happily as he struggled not to fall off the ledge and into our laps. And just like that, the first round of hide and seek was over. When Make volunteered to be 'it,' that kind of ended the game though because Ying and Rahi were too scared by him to play anymore. So he ran behind them chasing them telling them they'd better hide or else he'd get them. That only caused them to get more freaked out and run faster.

A couple of days later, I woke up and had some cereal for breakfast. I'd made some corn cereal out of corn I had left from summer. Well, I had corn cereal with milk and a not-so-healthy dose of sugar. I would leave that little detail out if Hiro asked. I had just finished rinsing my bowl and spoon out and sat them in the dish rack when I heard a knock on my door.

"Come in," I called as I wiped my hands on a dry dish towel and turned around.

Nori and Reina entered my house, Reina closing the door softly behind them.

"Hey you two! Good morning," I said as I sat the towel back down and welcomed them in.

I offered them some nice hot cups of tea and we chatted for a while before I figured I should probably get to work. We went outside and I went out to the pasture area to tend to my animals. Nori followed me and leaned against a fence while Reina was already busy taking a look at my crops.

"I think that Rufus likes you," I told Nori as my dog sat in front of her and wagged his tail enthusiastically. I suddenly didn't feel that special anymore. While Penelo was still not my biggest fan, Rufus was. And here he was giving Nori the same amount of attention he gave me. Did he just happen to like everybody he came across?

Nori laughed gently and gave Rufus the attention he wanted so badly. "I like him, too." He then hurried away to make sure that my cow didn't stray too far. He had really gotten quite good at helping me out on the farm.

Reina was crouched down over my carrots with a magnifying glass, looking at them as closely as possible and scribbling something down in a notebook I was only just then noticing she had with her.

"Hey, do you want to brush Dolph here?" I asked her as I held out the brush to her. Nori looked from me to the sheep and back again.

"M-Me? Brush a sheep?" she asked incredulously.

"Mmm-hmm. She's really gentle and I'm sure she'd love it if you did," I spoke confidently as Nori took the brush out of my hands.

She stepped up to Dolph and ran the brush over her. "Am I doing this right?" she asked me nervously as she kept on brushing.

"You're doing just fine," I assured her. "Just relax."

Dolph turned her head and licked Nori's hand, which caused Nori to laugh softly. "Oh, she's adorable!" Nori cooed as she started brushing my sheep more enthusiastically. Right from the start, Dolph had adapted to my farm much quicker than Snow had over at Jessica's.

Reina, who had apparently finished surveying my crops for now came over to see what all the fuss was about. "What's going on?" she asked, crossing her arms, book and all, over her chest as she stood to my left.

"Nori was brushing my sheep. And I daresay she's made a new friend in the process." Nori laughed some more and Reina stood there staring silently.

"Would you like to try your hand at brushing an animal, too?" I asked Reina when I caught her looking a little sad.

She looked surprised and there was a touch of color to her cheeks. "What? No, I. . ."

Just then, Dolph walked up to Reina and stared up at her. "I think she might like you, too, Reina," Nori said with amusement as she held the brush out to her friend.

With an annoyed sigh, which I was pretty sure was fake annoyance due to the little smile she was trying to hide, she took the brush and gave in to Dolph. That sheep of mine, she was a real character.

"This sheep. . .she's a girl, right?" Reina inquired as she hovered over Dolph with the brush cautiously. I saw the moment she decided to take the plunge because she got this surprisingly determined look on her face right before she just went for it.

"Yep," I confirmed, feeling lighthearted and nonchalant while being able to have girl time with these two. I kinda felt a little stab of sadness, though, as I wondered what the girls over in Bluebell were up to today.

I patted Reina's arm encouragingly and went over to my cow, Tifa, to get on with milking her since she had already been brushed for the day. Nori followed along with me, although she kept shooting amused little glances over toward Reina.

"If she's a girl, why give her a guy's name?" Reina asked me curiously as I pulled a little stool up to sit on. I retrieved my milker from my rucksack and hooked the tubes up to the container the milk would be going into before I got to work.

I grinned as I came to a realization. "I've already had this exact same conversation with Kana," I admitted with a laugh. "I introduced him to my horse, Levi, and since she's a girl he wanted to know why I gave her a guy's name. In both cases, it just felt right. I looked at Levi and felt she was a Levi. I looked at Dolph and felt she was a Dolph. Weird, I know, but. . ." I trailed off and shrugged before returning to my milking.

"It's not weird. Just," Nori paused as she sought out another word. "Different. In a good way," she informed me with a nod.

"Yeah, well if I think of names like that for my animals I can only imagine what names I will come up with for my future children," I joked as I finished up with the milking. "Maybe I should leave the naming up to the father."

We were all quiet for a little bit while I focused on getting the milk ready to ship off. Once I was finished and making sure the top of the container was securely closed, Nori spoke again. "So what is it like in Bluebell, Lillian?"

"Bluebell?" I intoned as I patted Tifa on the back affectionately and put my milker and the milk in my rucksack. As I was pulling my watering can out I said "Haven't we discussed Bluebell before?"

Nori nodded her head. "Yes," she said with a thoughtful expression on her face, placing a hand against her cheek as she considered that. "We've discussed it a little bit, but it's always nice to learn more."

I thought about Bluebell as I walked over to fill my watering can up. "Well, it makes me very sad that the two mayors don't get along because both of these towns are such wonderful places. I truly believe that everybody could get along quite well if they could make peace."

"They're getting better," Reina said softly as she joined us, holding out the brush since she was done with Dolph.

"Oh, thanks," I told her as I sat the full watering can down and put the brush back where it belonged. "And you think so?"

"Listen up," she said, wagging her finger at me with a serious look. "You haven't watched them most of your life like we have. There. . .was a time when they were much worse."

"This is true," Nori confirmed.

"I think it's your influence that's making a difference," said Reina with a smile as she crossed her arms over her chest.

I think I might have blushed a little at that recognition from Reina. "Thanks. Well, uh. . .their feud aside. . .Bluebell is a great place. It kind of his this European feel to it and this really charming atmosphere. The people are all warm and friendly.

"That sounds wonderful," Nori said brightly as she pressed her hands against her heart.

"Mmm-hmm! Unlike Konohana, though, their main focus is livestock. I mean, I don't know anybody other than me there who grows any crops. There _are_ tons of trees around, though. And there are beautiful flowers all over the place. Rose, the wife of the mayor, maintains them."

That really got Reina's attention. I could see her face light up. "They have a lot of plants?"

"Oh yeah," I said in a matter-of-fact way. And then I remembered something. "There's even a flower shop! My friend Cam is the florist in Bluebell. And goodness me, he _loves _flowers. He's really knowledgeable and passionate about them. He loves to make bouquets and perfumes. I always keep fresh flowers in my house because of him. He's quite talented."

"Excuse me, but. . .Lillian?" Nori said as she pointed behind me. "I believe you have company."

I looked over my shoulder and my mouth dropped open a little. "Cam!" I said as I turned around to face him. "Oh wow. You really came!"

He was standing there with his cheeks red and he was tugging his hat down a bit. "Yeah, I. . .I didn't mean to intrude or anything."

"Don't be silly. You're not intruding," I told him as I made my way over to his side. "Cam, these are my friends Nori and Reina. Girls, this is the guy I was just talking about." I made sure to point out which one was Nori and which one was Reina.

Nori giggled a little bit and Reina looked about as awkward as Cam did at the moment. Once the surprise wore off and the color left his cheeks, Cam's expression cooled quite a bit. And then I remembered how it was when we first met, before we were friends. It had been a while since he'd warmed toward me so I'd started to forget what it was like to see that look in his eyes.

"I know you have trouble with new people and everything, but they're my friends and I promise you they're great. So could you be nice? For me?" I whispered to him. After that, his expression softened considerably. It kind of surprised me that he flipped that switch so quickly.

"Any friend of Lillian's is fine with us," Nori said with a funny grin on her face.

"It's nice to meet you," Reina told him somewhat reluctantly.

"It's nice to meet you, too," he told them politely, shaking their hands before sticking his own in his pockets. "I've seen you two at the Cooking Festival before."

"So, uh, I guess that Reina and I will go now. I'm sure Reina will be willing to discuss her crop observations with you later." And then Nori leaned in to whisper in my ear. "You didn't mention how handsome he is!"

With that said, she grabbed Reina's arm and practically pulled her away. Reina barely had time to get out "See you later" before they were gone, leaving a trail of dust in their wake. I honestly had no idea what had just happened. And just like that, Cam and I were alone.


	10. Lillian and Cam's Epic Mud Battle

**Author's Note:** I'll admit I had tons of fun writing this chapter! Well, I had fun writing the previous chapters as well, but from chapter ten onward as my plans steadily unfold I had even more fun. This chapter here is for the Cam fans for sure! I'm so happy I get to share it with you. I hope you have fun!

CrimsonCrush: I'm glad you liked it! And thanks for letting me know about the name. ^_^ Well there's lots of Cam in this chapter so I can't wait to find out what you think of this one!

* * *

"Yeah, so those were a couple of my Konohana friends," I told Cam with a pleased smile. He stood there quietly, so I continued. "They dropped by to hang out. And because Reina wanted to take a look at my plants for some research. She's a botanist, by the way. She really loves plants. Now that I think about it, she kind of reminds me of you in a few ways. . .You'd probably hit it off if you talked sometime."

He stood there with that blank, neutral expression of his until his cheeks pinked again momentarily. Why was he blushing? "Did you really mean what you said?"

I blinked once. I blinked twice. "I'm sorry, what?"

"The things you were saying about me to them when I walked up. Did you mean that?"

My brow furrowed as I mentally sorted through what had been said recently. And then I remembered. I'd practically been singing his praises before he happened to appear behind me. "Oh! Of course I meant that, Cam. You _are _knowledgeable and passionate. _And _talented."

He cleared his throat and tugged on his hat. His cheeks grew darker. And I found it beyond adorable. "Thank you," he said quietly. When he looked back up, the color was fading and he nearly looked back to normal.

Just then I realized it had been a little while since I'd seen him since Konohana had kept me busy recently. I'd kind of missed him in that short span of time. "So you made the trip over to Konohana, hmm?"

"Well, yeah," he said with a slightly raised eyebrow as if it should be completely obvious. "You asked me to."

"That I did," I agreed as I picked my watering can back up. "I'm happy to see you! How has Bluebell been?"

"The same as usual," he told me. "Except. . .Laney tried to die her hair red like Georgia's and it turned out orange."

"Oh my goddess, you're kidding me!" I exclaimed, surprise overtaking my face as I paused with my watering can poised over my eggplants.

"Yes, I am," he told me with a small smirk.

"Oh Cam," I said as I smacked his arm lightly. And then I had a good laugh. "And here you told me that you can't tell a joke!"

"I still can't," he admitted with a sigh. He put one hand in his pocket and touched his hat with the other with a less than happy look on his face. "When he heard that I was coming over here today, Ash suggested I tell it."

"Don't worry," I assured him while I watered the eggplants. "Besides, you really don't need jokes, Cam. Just be yourself, okay? I like you exactly as you are. Be sure to tell Ash that it was a good joke, though."

"Yeah," he told me with a smile as he gazed around at my farm. "So this is Konohana."

"Yep," I said as I moved on to my green peppers. "What do you think?"

He thought about that for a minute before giving an approving nod of his head. "It's not Bluebell, but it's nice."

"You should see this place in spring. The cherry trees start to flower and Konohana has a festival where everybody gets together just to appreciate the cherry blossoms and chat with each other. I think you'd like it."

"I think I would. Especially if I got to see it with you," he said as he walked around and observed the crops I was watering, his hands deep in his pockets.

I felt my cheeks heat a little at that. I felt inexplicably pleased that he'd said those simple words in that particular way. "Y-Yeah? I think it would be fun to see them with you, too."

I finished up with those crops and turned around to find him standing in front of the flowers I'd planted. "Ah, you found my nadeshikos!" I hurried over to stand next to him. "So what do you think? How do they look? Are they growing satisfactorily? Did I do something wrong? I. . ."

"Lillian, relax. Take a deep breath, okay?" he interrupted as I bounced from side to side on the balls of my feet.

Actually minding his suggestion, I took a deep breath and watered the flowers while he observed me. I felt more calm by the time I was finished. He crouched down then, resting one arm on his knee and raising the other toward one of the flowers. He ran his knuckles along the stem. He rubbed one of the leaves between his fingers. He caressed the petals lightly with a loving smile. My stomach did little flip-flops while watching the tenderness that came so naturally to him when he was in his element.

"So what do you think?" I asked as I crouched down next to him, my knee bumping into his, and stared at the flower.

"They're growing beautifully. You're doing a great job," he assured me with a pat on my shoulder. "Lillian, the process is essentially the same as with any other crop you grow. You know what you're doing, believe me. All you need is to give them a little love and care. They'll take care of the rest."

I immediately felt completely better. Staring into those emerald green eyes I hadn't seen in a while, I idly wondered why it was I felt so confident after gaining his approval. He stared back at me and I smiled. It was right on the tip of my tongue to thank him when all of a sudden. . .

"Aaaah!" I said, unsure what, exactly, was happening as I fell back on the ground and felt pressure on my chest. My eyes had squeezed shut when I'd hit the ground, but when I opened them I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There, sitting right on top of me, was Rufus. My dog had tackled me to the ground. And then he started licking all over my face, wagging his tail at a thousand miles an hour. "R-Rufus! Come on now. Stop! Oh, that tickles, no! Okay, okay boy. That's enough. Come on now, we have company!"

I was finally able to get Rufus off, but I felt kind of wet and clammy as I sat up. That was when I noticed that Rufus had caused me to drop my watering can and it had spilled all over the dirt, effectively turning it into mud. And that mud was all over me.

Laughter. I heard laughter. Surprised, I looked over and spotted Cam. He was _laughing_ at me! In fact, the more confused I looked, the harder he laughed. He threw his head back a little, even. I'd barely heard him laugh at all before and I had _never_ seen that man laugh with such abandon. The fact that he was doing it at my expense did nothing to lessen the warm feeling I had in my heart at hearing him so entirely amused.

"Cam!" I said, faking exasperation as I sloshed about in the mud.

"I-I'm sorry, Lillian. I am. I just. . .You just. . ." He couldn't even get a cohesive sentence out. I had never seen him like this before. It was an entirely new side to him that I'd never known he had in him to show me. And I really liked it.

"It's funny, huh?" I said as I sat up and leaned forward.

His laughter suddenly died down and he eyed me suspiciously. "Oh no. No, no," he said as he tried to back up. He didn't make it in time, though, because I grabbed his arm and pulled him down into the mud with me.

"Lillian!" he sputtered as he found himself just as wet and dirty and chilly as I was. "Oh now you're going to get it."

I screamed as I tried to scurry away from him, but he caught me with a muddy hand to my leg. I turned around, reached over, and smeared my muddy hand down the side of his face. So he took both his hands and smeared them down both sides of my face.

"Cam!" I gasped, trying to wipe my cheeks on my sleeves. "Oh no you didn't!" I made it to my feet and grabbed a handful of mud.

"Hey, wait. You don't want to do that," he claimed as he hurried to his feet. He almost slipped and fell back down in his haste before backing up a few feet.

"I think I do, actually," I informed him, advancing closer.

"No, Lillian, you _really_ don't."

"Yes, Cam, I _really _do," I said as I raised my arm.

"Lillian. No, no, no!"

The next thing he knew, a mud ball was dripping down his chest. He looked down at his chest and then up at me before looking down at the muddy ground with with a gleam in his eye. That was when I realized I should probably run in the direction opposite of him, but he was too fast for me. A mud ball flew into my shoulder before I had the chance to make a run for it. By the time it was all over we were both thoroughly muddy and laughing like there was no tomorrow.

I was struggling to breathe, leaning over and putting my muddy hands on my muddy knees. I looked up at Cam and we caught each other's eye before erupting into laughter once more. When we finally did wind down, I looked at him and said "So, Cam, how would you like to trudge your mud into my house and have a cup of tea?"

The corners of his lips twitched as he struggled not to laugh again. "Are you sure? I don't want to get your house dirty."

I pointed at myself and gave him a 'don't be silly' look. "Cam, I'm going to get my house dirty whether you're there or not."

"Alright," he said, relenting as he followed me toward my house and to the front door.

I slipped my shoes off and sat them next to the door before walking inside. Cam stared down at his shoes and at my doorway and finally decided to take his shoes off, too. I laughed as he sat them down and came inside the house, closing the door softly behind him.

"We're friends, you know. So it's not that scandalous walking into my house without your shoes."

Cam glanced around with a whistle. "So this is where you live," he stated as he followed me toward the kitchen.

"Yep," I said as I turned on the faucet and grabbed my kettle. I filled it up with water before sitting it on the stove and turning the burner on.

"I like it," he decided with a little smile. "It's not your house in Bluebell, but it's nice."

I stopped what I was doing and looked at him curiously. "When did you see my house in Bluebell?"

He rubbed the back of his head with a look of consternation. "I. . ."

That was when it dawned on me. It was something I hadn't realized until right that second. "Oh! Cam? You're the one who takes care of the flowers in the boxes outside the house, aren't you?"

He nodded slowly, wearing a confused look. "Yeah, I am. . ."

"When I moved in they were so beautiful and so well cared for! I used to think that it was Rose who looked after them, but it was you all along, hmm?"

The water was hot so I turned the burner off and quickly grabbed two cups.

"You can use this one," I told Cam, pulling out a green saucer and sitting a lovely green cup down on top of it. "It matches your eyes." I grabbed the blue one I had used earlier with the girls for myself since that was my favorite color. I then opened the cupboard that held my tea cans. "So what kind of tea would you like?"

Cam leaned over, some of his mud dripping on my shoulder as he surveyed the contents of the cabinet. "How about this one?" He pointed toward my can of rose tea.

"Figures," I said with a smile as I took it out and opened it up, pulling out a bag and plopping it into his cup. I took another one out for myself and put that in my cup.

We leaned back against the counter together as our tea steeped. I looked at the drips of mud that we'd brought with us from the front door. Cam noticed it as well. "Are you going to need help cleaning this up?"

"Nope," I told him. "I can handle it. Besides, it would've been worse if we'd worn our shoes inside." I pointed down at our sock-clad feet, which were perfectly clean.

"I've never played in the mud before," he said after a couple of minutes.

"Neither have I," I admitted. "Although, when I was a kid and it would rain, I used to run outside and jump in all the puddles. And then I would come home with my feet soaking wet. I wouldn't even take my shoes off, I'd just walk into the house and leave water in my wake. My mom would get so mad," I said with gentle laughter as I accessed those pleasant memories.

"So where is she now?" Cam asked when I fell silent. "Is she back in the city?"

I looked down at my feet again. "Well, sort of. . .I mean, her body is there. She died when I was fifteen."

"Oh. . .I'm sorry, Lillian. I didn't mean to drag that up for you," he told me with a wince.

"Don't worry about it. It was a long time ago and that doesn't make it hurt any less, but my mom would've wanted me to move forward and be happy. You know?"

"Yeah, I. . .Hey, I did, too," he said quietly.

"You did what?" I asked, turning around and taking my tea bag out before depositing it in the trash.

He turned around and took his out as well, throwing it away with another sigh. "I lost my mom, too. When I was fifteen."

"Oh wow," I spoke gently, sadly. "Cam, I. . .I had no idea."

We were both quiet as we put cream and sugar in our cups. We turned back around and continued to lean against the counter since neither one of us wanted to sit down on my chairs and get those dirty, too.

"This tea is good," Cam told me, deciding to move past the previous subject. I was grateful for it. I didn't want such a heavy subject to weigh the day down.

"I'm glad you like it."

We sipped on our tea and when we finished, we moved on to talking about lighter and happier things, like some of the shenanigans that him, Ash, and Laney used to get into when they were children. We discussed our mud battle and realized that the mud we had caked in our hair was probably going to be hard to get out. Still, though, it had been worth it. When we were done, I washed the cups and sat them in the dish rack.

"Well, I should probably be getting back to Bluebell," Cam said as he looked at the clock on my wall. "It takes a while to make the walk."

"I can always give you a ride, you know," I told him as we walked toward the door, careful to avoid the mud on the floor since it would suck if we got our socks dirty.

"You don't have to do that. I'll be fine. Besides, you might want to get on cleaning all this mud up before it dries more than it has."

Darn. He had a point. It would probably be better to tackle that mess while it was still relatively easy to clean up. "I'll walk you to the town gate then," I decided as I made my way outside and slipped my shoes on.

"That sounds good," he agreed as he pulled his shoes on as well.

I closed the door and we walked by the scene of the crime. . .I mean the area where our mud battle had taken place. I would probably never look at that spot the same way ever again, even when it was dry and all evidence of what had happened was gone.

"The flowers really do look great," Cam said as we walked up my driveway and joined the main road. "They're in top form, so you'll be able to ship them off for a good price once they're ready."

"You think so?" I said as we quickly reached our destination. "I'll be sure to set one aside for you, okay?"

"Really? That sounds great," he said with a smile as he put his hands in his pockets, rocking back and forth on his feet as we stood just inside the gate. "Today was fun."

"We should do it again sometime." I reached my finger out and wiped a glob of mud off his shoulder. "Perhaps without the mud, though."

He laughed at that. "Yes, I think we could do without the mud." And then he said "I can just imagine the looks I'm going to get when I walk into town like this."

"Oh yeah, people are going to stare." I beamed at him as I pushed a strand of muddy semi-dry hair back behind my ear. "Just wait until you get home and Howard and Laney see you!"

Cam groaned then, surely imagining what was going to happen upon his return. He then let out a resigned sigh and said "Well, I'll see you. Come to Bluebell soon, okay?"

"Okay," I agreed as he started walking away. "Bye, Cam."

He waved at me and I turned and headed home. When I made it there, I surveyed the damage again. I had my work cut out for me. But when I remembered the way Cam laughed so freely earlier, the way he'd come so far out of his shell with me, I didn't mind the work at all.


	11. Never a Dull Moment

**Author's Note: **I almost didn't have time to get this chapter out, but I was determined. I'm going out of town tomorrow and I should already be in bed. I'm in a real hurry so without further ado, here's the next chapter!

* * *

Poor Dirk. Poor, poor Dirk. Not only had I not yet found the time to hang out with him over at Yun's Tea House, but the poor man ended up sick. That's right. The mail carrier was sick! Therefore, since he was sick, he was not able to get out there and do his job.

"I'm fine," Dirk insisted as he sat on the edge of his bed and struggled to put his shoes on. They ended up on the wrong feet.

"Oh my goddess, you are not fine Dirk. How about you do Konohana and Bluebell both a favor and get some rest?"

"But," he began.

"No buts. The world will not stop turning if you take the necessary time to rest and recuperate. Honestly, it's the responsible thing to do as well since going out there means you'll be exposing everybody in two towns to your germs. And then _everybody_ could get sick and then you could be responsible for bringing some epidemic upon not one, but _two_ towns. And yes, this includes children. Think about the children Dirk. If you won't rest for yourself then rest for the children. You could. . ."

"Thank you Lillian, I get it," Dirk interrupted in a flat tone of voice as he weakly kicked his shoes back off and laid down. "Are you always this annoying? I used to think you were charming and funny, but now. . ."

"I'm only annoying when I need to be," I told him with a smile as I covered him up, pulling the blanket up to just beneath his chin. "As soon as you get better, I will pour on the charm and tell you some awesome jokes. Okay?"

"What about the mail, though? It has to be delivered and I'll feel awful if I let everybody down," he managed to get out before I hunted down his thermometer 2and instructed him to open up his mouth and keep it under his tongue.

"Don't worry about it, okay? I've got it covered. And don't worry about my farm work, either, because that was done before I came over here and found you on the floor in front of your door. I'll deliver the mail to everybody in Konohana, and then I'll go on horseback to Bluebell to help make up for lost time."

The thermometer beeped and I pulled it out, shaking my head as I saw the result. "It's high. You stay here, okay? I'm going to tell Ayame and Hiro. I'm sure one of them will come here and look after you while I do what needs to be done. And I'll ask Yun if she can have somebody bring you over some soup."

Dirk pulled the covers up over his face, but I could still hear him sigh and say "Thanks, Lillian. I'm sorry I'm causing you all this trouble."

"You're not causing me trouble," I told him as I put the thermometer back in its case. "Friends look out for each other when they need it. I know that if or when I need you, you'll have my back. Right?"

"Right," he agreed, pulling the covers back down and offering me a pale smile. He then pushed the covers aside altogether since it was probably better for him not to be under them with such a high fever.

So I went and did what I said I was going to do. I located Dirk's mail bag before I hurried straight on over to the clinic and informed Ayame and Hiro about what had happened. So how had I come across Dirk in the first place? I'd been walking down the road toward town when I could have sworn I heard somebody call out for help. After following the sound to Dirk's front door, I'd discovered him on the floor.

"I got him into bed and I took his temperature. It's 101.9! Since there's not really a chance of him getting over here, I'd say he definitely needs a house call," I finally finished, leaning across the counter of the clinic while Ayame and Hiro listened intently.

With a nod of her head, Ayame walked over to where her medical bag was sitting and opened it up to make sure she had everything she needed. "Thank you for telling us, Lillian," she said as she closed it back up. "I'll go over and give Dirk a check up. Hiro, please stay here and man the counter in case anybody shows up."

"Yes, of course," Hiro assured her. "This is most unfortunate. I certainly hope that he gets better soon."

"Oh, and Hiro," Ayame said with foreboding cheer as she walked by him. "I expect you to read the book I left on your desk earlier while I'm gone. I'll probably give you a little quiz when I get back."

I watched as Hiro took off from behind the counter and sprinted upstairs to retrieve the book. I was impressed. I had no idea Hiro could run that fast.

I walked out with Ayame and as she headed toward Dirk's house, I went to the tea house. I filled Yun in on what was going on and asked her if she could whip up some soup and have somebody take it to Dirk. After that, I looked through Dirk's bag and tried to get an understanding of how he had things set up. When I felt like I had the gist of it, I went about making his mail deliveries throughout Konohana. And of course whenever people saw me, they wanted to know why I was doing Dirk's job. So basically, everybody in town knew that Dirk was sick by the time I'd made the rounds. I suppose it really couldn't be avoided, though. I certainly couldn't tell them that I was making the mail deliveries just because I felt like it since everybody knew I was generally a busy person.

Ina was particularly upset when she heard the news and had decided she was definitely going over to check in on Dirk. He was, after all, a citizen of Konohana and she felt very responsible for the well-being of every person who lived in her village. I stopped at the request board after I left town hall and perused it very quickly, snatching a couple of them off and storing them in my rucksack to work on when I wasn't quite as busy as I was at the moment. Gombe wanted a couple of crickets. It probably wouldn't be too difficult to catch a couple when I actually had time to forage through the mountain.

On my way back through to my farm, Kana was standing outside his shop. Neither one of us had mentioned the little incident that had occurred behind the request board since it happened and I planned on keeping it that way.

"What's all the commotion about?" he asked as he pointed over toward Dirk's house.

"Our resident mail carrier is sick today. Ayame is over there right now checking him out. Yun is going to have somebody take him soup. And I'm guessing Ina will be over there within the next ten minutes. _Sooooo_ I am your friendly neighborhood mail lady for the day. Here you go," I told him as I grabbed an envelope out of Dirk's bag and handed it over to Kana.

As soon as I made it home, I got Levi saddled up and hurried out the town gates. I hadn't seen any mail for Sheng in Dirk's bag, so I didn't stop as I made my way toward the mountain. Although I did stop at the top of the mountain long enough to give an offering to the Harvest Goddess. Everybody in Bluebell was quite happy to see me. When I explained to them what the occasion of my visit was, though, they all seemed worried. It turned out that Dirk was pretty popular over in Bluebell. I wasn't surprised, actually, given Dirk's personality. I was asked by more than one person to wish Dirk a speedy recovery for them. Rutger had also asked me to inform Dirk that were he living in Bluebell, he probably wouldn't have gotten sick and that he was welcome to make his home there instead.

A speedy recovery did not come for poor Dirk, though. The next day, the day of the cooking festival, came. Dirk wasn't getting any better. Ayame and Hiro abstained from the festival to keep an eye on him. They probably wouldn't have wanted to be there anyway because we lost, which I definitely was not happy about. Pierre had complimented my food, but Bluebell's had been just a little better than ours overall. I mean, it really was a close contest that time.

The next day was that of the Moon Viewing Festival. And yes, Dirk was still sick. He was on the mend, though, doing quite a bit better. And he absolutely insisted that nobody miss the festival on his account.

I'd felt guilty, but I would have felt more guilty had I stayed away from the festival and made Dirk feel guilty for making me feel compelled to miss the festival because of him. So I chose me feeling guilty over him feeling guilty.

Besides, interestingly enough, Mikhail had volunteered to check in on him. Mikhail had said he probably wouldn't be going to the festival anyway so he wouldn't be missing it on Dirk's account. And he certainly didn't know Dirk well enough to drop going to a festival just for him so Dirk said he was fine with it.

"I hope Dirk's okay," I mumbled as I made my way up the mountain behind Mako.

Nori and Reina were walking just a little ahead of me to my right. Reina spotted something in the bushes and paused to investigate it. My guess was that it was some kind of plant that had caught her eye. Whatever it was, Nori stopped to ask her what was going on and urge her to hurry up before they both missed out on the festival.

"But what if I can't find it later?" Reina asked, crossing her arms over her chest and casting a longing look at the bushes.

"You'll find it," Nori assured her. "Reina, it's not going to grow legs and walk off."

I walked right on by Ayame and Mako since I didn't want to get in the way of Mako having a conversation with the secret recipient of his affection. One of these days he'd work up the courage to tell her how he felt. It probably wouldn't be tonight, but someday. And I was definitely cheering him on!

Ina and Kana were standing off to the side and saw me coming. "So, Lillian, are you ready to find out that the Moon Viewing Festival is better than what they offer over in Bluebell?" Ina asked me bluntly.

How my story about the Stargazing Festival had gotten from Nori all the way to Ina was a mystery to me. My best guess was that Gombe had heard the story while I was telling it to Nori and randomly mentioned it to Ina when he was playing at Town Hall one day.

"Of course she's going to find that out. I mean, _I'm_ at this festival so it's automatically bound to be better," Kana joked.

I laughed at that. Luckily, I knew Kana. If I didn't know him, I might would assume he was completely serious and quite pompous for saying that. "I'm sure that both festivals are equally as great," was my diplomatic response.

Realizing that I wasn't about to give an inch and play favorites, Ina went to join the others. Kana and I quickly followed her up. I gazed up at the night sky as I walked, hoping that I didn't bump into anybody since I really should have been paying better attention to where I was walking.

Ina cleared her throat, though, and that got my attention. I stood on Mako's left as Ina stood before us all and began to talk. "There not a cloud in the sky! It's perfect for the Moon Viewing Festival!" she enthused "Let's forget about work for now and admire the majesty of the moon!"

I turned to my left to face Yun and Gombe to see what they were talking about. "Ah, everyone moon-viewing together is a rare event!" Gombe said, fighting to stay still since he was so excited for a good festival. He had a great deal of energy, more than anybody his age I had ever met. Surely that was a sign of somebody who had lived a very active and happy life.

"Yes!" agreed Yun with absolute delight. "And the moon is so visible! It's a real treat it is clear out tonight."

"When I was a kid, I kind of fancied myself as an amateur astronomer," I admitted, my voice heavy with nostalgia. I had gotten Chelsea interested in it, too, since the sky was so clear during our summers spent in Flower Bud village.

"An astronomer? Is that so, Lillian?" Yun inquired curiously.

"Yeah. My dad had bought me a telescope at a garage sale. You can't really see the sky that well from the city, so he would sometimes drive me just outside the city to where it was more visible. And I'd spend a few hours looking up at the sky, trying to find certain planets and whatnot. When all else failed, though, it was always easy to find the moon!"

"You certainly can't miss that," Gombe laughed.

"Pandas look at the moon when they eat bamboo!" Sheng threw in there, steering the conversation in a slightly different direction. "They understand what moon viewing is all about!"

"Oh really?" Ayame joined in. "Now there's a sight I'd like to see. Pandas are such cuties!"

They continued to talk amongst themselves, but I kept thinking about why it was I was the only person in the village who seemed to have never seen any of these mysterious pandas! I had encountered all sorts of wildlife in the areas surrounding Konohana, but never a panda. Maybe the pandas didn't like me. . .

Oh no, they'd started arguing about pandas so I took that as my cue to go elsewhere. Uh-oh, it sounded like Yun was putting them in their place. I decided it was time to join the younger crowd to see what they were talking about and hopefully they were actually talking rather than arguing.

Before I made my way over there, though, I grabbed me some food since Yun had brought some for the occasion. I wasn't going to pass up on some perfectly good dumplings, you know? With my dumplings in hand, I traded places with Mako and let him join Yun and the others.

I showed up just as Hiro was in the middle of scolding Kana for something.

"Hey, whoa, it's all good. Chill out, Hiro," Kana said when I came to stand between Nori and Reina.

"I think Hiro's concern is pretty reasonable. . ." Nori agreed.

"What are we talking about?" I asked since I had no idea what I'd just walked into.

"Kana wants to take Hayate out riding tonight, but Hiro thinks Hayate could get sick," Reina clarified for me.

"It's quite cold out now. . .Going horse riding at night can't be good for Hayate. . ." Nori continued as Kana stood there looking thoughtful, taking her words in.

"Yeah," he admitted as he stroked his chin. "I guess when you put it like that, she could catch a cold."

"Dumpling?" I offered to share from where I stood between Nori and Reina. Perhaps food could help get everybody back on track and enjoying the festival.

"Your loss," Kana said after everybody else declined. "I'll take one!"

"Be sure to chew it a minimum of twenty times to aid in your digestion," Hiro warned, acting like the doctor he wanted to be again.

"I'll chew as many times as I see fit," Kana responded simply before he took a bite out the dumpling he'd accepted.

Hiro was just getting ready to say something else when Nori cut in. "Now boys, this is a peaceful event so there should be peace."

That effectively ensured that another argument didn't happen. And then Reina pointed out "Look, things are going to get started."

Everybody fell silent for a couple of minutes as we all looked up at the sky and gazed at the full moon. The moon didn't possess it's own light, always reflecting that of the sun. But the light was soft and beautiful. There was almost this magical quality to it that made me feel serene and happy.

"Wow," said Reina with a look of peace upon her face. "The moon is so beautiful. Looking at it is so mesmerizing!"

"Isn't it, though?" I said cheerily.

Kana finished off the last of the dumpling I gave him and put in his two cents, his smile bright. "The moon is looking good. The dumplings taste good. Oh yeah, it's _all_ good!"

Yun heard him from where she was standing and looked ecstatic to have his approval. "Oh my, I'm so happy you like the dumplings! There are plenty, so have some more!"

"Don't mind if I do," Kana replied as he made his way over to the table to get some.

"So what do you think?" Nori said as she came over to stand by me. "Is the Moon Veiwing Festival here better than the Stargazing Festival over in Bluebell?"

I smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Now Nori, you know you're not going to get me to choose sides, right?"

"I was just asking. You're the only person who has been to both and would know," she insisted, looking completely innocent and the exact opposite of Ina. "So, was _he_ there?"

"Who?" I asked, blinking in confusion.

"Your handsome friend the florist."

"What florist?" Kana asked as he returned with his dumplings and reclaimed his spot.

"Cam was his name, correct?" Nori and Reina shared some look between them and I raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, that's him. And of course Cam was there," I informed them as I felt this sudden and strange shift within our crowd.

Hiro had this kind of pinched look on his face before he went to chat with Ayame. Kana was now stuffing dumplings into his mouth and refused to look at me. Reina was actually _smirking_. And Nori was giggling.

"That's all for this year's Moon Viewing Festival!" called Ina over the crowd. "Come again next year!"

I let out a sigh of relief. Suddenly, for some reason, I was ready to go home.


	12. Follow Your Heart

The next day when I'd tried to talk to him, Kana had gotten an attitude with me about how he didn't feel like talking to me. . .again. Only this time, instead of apologizing, I'd basically told him whatever because I quite honestly wasn't in the mood for his attitude. So we weren't talking for a while. I'd just gone about ignoring him. I'd spent my days doing my work, hanging out in Konohana, visiting my friends over in Bluebell, taking on requests, foraging, and basically anything and everything that had absolutely nothing to do with him. Dirk and I had been spending time together, including finally hanging out at Yun's Tea House and getting me some more help in the cooking department. Hiro and Dirk had been right since Yun had been quite helpful.

It was on a Friday when Kana finally couldn't take it anymore. I was at home minding my own business, assessing the contents of my storage to see if I had what I needed to fulfill some requests. The cooking festival, which had been scheduled to be taking place that day, had been held on Thursday instead because Pierre had a scheduling conflict for Friday. Konohana won this time in case you were wondering. So now it was just another day. When I heard a knock on my door, I had absolutely no idea who it was. Instead of just telling them to come in, I decided to go over the door and open it up. Right on the other side of it, I found Kana. He was standing there looking appropriately sad.

"Kana," I said in a polite and clipped tone. "What brings you over?"

He sighed and looked down at the ground. "Look, I'm sorry about how I acted. I wasn't in a good mood and I kind of took it out on you. So I deserve the silent treatment you've been giving me. I came here to say that I'm sorry and I hope you'll start talking to me again."

I leaned just inside the doorway with my arms crossed over my chest. He looked at me hopefully and I let out a little sigh of my own. "Okay, I forgive you," I replied.

"Just like that?" he asked, unsure if I was serious or not.

"Yeah. I mean, it wasn't that big of a deal and you apologized for it so we're fine now."

He looked relieved as he gave me a small smile. "Well I'd thought it might take more than that, so I brought ya something."

My head tilted to the side as I took that information in. "You brought me something?"

Kana reached to his left and picked up something he'd left sitting at the side of my house. There was a cage. And inside the cage was a snowy white owl.

"An owl?!" I choked out, staring at it incredulously.

"Uh-huh. I figured you could train it and if you go up to the top of the mountain, have it fly you to one of the towns or something. So do you. . .uh. . .do you want it?"

"Do I? Of course I do!" I said gladly as I accepted the cage from him. "Oh wow, Kana. Thank you!"

I stared at my beautiful owl in his cage and I thought he just didn't look right in there. He deserved to be able to fly around freely. I opened up the cage and beckoned him out. He immediately took off flying around the room before landing on a perch by the door. I'd never understood what it was for until the second the owl landed on it.

"So what are you gonna name him?" Kana asked, looking much more at ease now that I was good and happy.

"Hmm, that's a good question," I said as I cradled the side of my face in my hand and considered my new owl.

"Please make it better than Levi and Dolph," Kana said, reminding me how he didn't have the greatest confidence in my naming skills.

"Oh hush, you," I said as I smacked his arm playfully. "Hmm. . .You know, I think his name will be Aram."

"Aram. . .?" Kana said, seeming as if he were weighing the name on his tongue as he spoke it. "You know what? I actually like it."

"Yeah? Good. It's decided then. He's Aram."

Kana went on to talk about how I should buy owl food from Raul and after that I kind of tuned him out a little because I was having such a good time watching Aram fly around my house. He eventually tired of the house and flew outside. He didn't stray too far, though. He seemed to understand already that this was his home and that he shouldn't leave the farm.

"So what do you say?" Kana asked me as his voice started to penetrate the little invisible bubble that had surrounded me.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear that. What do I say to what?"

"I was thinking we could go have a talk under the tree across from Yun's. Do you want to go?"

As reluctant as I was to leave Aram, I decided that it would be nice to have a good talk with Kana since I wanted to put our little tiff all the way behind us. We talked the whole time were were walking to the tree. He'd told me about Hayate's latest escapades and how she was probably hoping I'd bring her a horse treat soon. I'd told him about how unexpectedly difficult it had been for me to find the crickets I'd needed to fulfill Gombe's request. We actually hadn't been under the tree that long when Dirk happened upon us.

"Hey, Kana! Lillian! So glad I ran into you!" he called from near the bridge, back to his normally healthy and cheerful self. "Good morning."

By then, it was around 11:30. "Hi Dirk," I said as he walked over and stood in front of Kana.

"So what's up?" Kana asked as the wind blew his bangs into his eyes. He raised a hand and pushed them back to the side where they belonged.

"I've got a letter for you," the mail carrier explained as he took it out of that bag of his, which I now felt I knew pretty well. "Here it is!" Dirk handed the letter to Kana. "There's one for you as well." After handing an envelope over to me, he said "See you later!"

As Dirk continued on his way, I thought about how happy I was that he was fully recovered and how I'd like to hang out with him at Yun's again sometime soon. I then turned to face Kana. "I don't get many letters," he admitted. "I wonder who it's from."

I had a pretty good idea as to who mine was from since I was due for another letter from my father. The mystery surrounding Kana's letter, though, prompted me to tuck mine under my arm and wait as he opened up his. I'd delivered mail to him before when I was filling in for Dirk, but that had been a bill for something he'd ordered.

Kana turned the envelope over and looked at the return address, a surprised yet joyful smile appearing on his face. "It's from my dad. . .!"

"Oh, that's great!" I told him since I knew he'd been worried after such a long time without receiving word from his father. "You've been waiting for this, haven't you? Don't mind me, go ahead and read it."

He nodded and carefully opened the envelope up, as if it were an incredibly fragile glass antique. He pulled the letter out with just as much reverence. "Let's see. . .What does it say?"

The letter was private so he didn't have to read it out to me, but he chose to do it anyway. His father had apparently found the perfect horse he'd been searching so long for. But the horse had to be in a certain environment to flourish. So he wanted Kana to move there. It seemed like it was definitely fate when it turned out that the village he wanted Kana to come to was the one his mother had grown up in.

Kana looked truly torn, like he was between a rock and a hard place. "He wants me to leave Konohana and move to my mom's hometown?"

"That would certainly be an adjustment. Wow Kana. . ."

"Out of the blue. . ." he mumbled as he thought about his father's words. "I have work to do here. I can't just. . ." Kana looked over at me from the corner of his eye kind of pensively before turning to face me. "Lillian, what do you think I should do?"

That was a big decision and he was asking me for my opinion? I didn't know. . .I mean, on the one hand I would be sad to see my friend go. On the other, I understood how badly he'd missed his father. Ultimately, though, it really had to be his decision and I didn't want to influence him one way or the other. "I think you should. . .follow your heart."

He mulled that over in silence for a little bit before suddenly perking up. "I guess you're right. Follow my heart, yeah?" He thought it over for another thirty or seconds or so before he reached his conclusion. "Okay, I decided! I'm gonna stay in Konohana. I feel bad for dad, but I love this village, and I have a life here. Plus. . ." He trailed off and stared at me strangely for a few seconds. "There's someone in this village that I don't want to leave behind."

I was confused. Who was he so reluctant to leave behind? He certainly wasn't going to leave Hayate behind now was he? There was no chance of that happening. "Who?" I queried since I was still in the dark.

"Oh, nah!" he said immediately. "It's nothing. Forget it. Anyway. . .I feel bad for dad, but I don't wanna leave this village. So, I'll be seeing ya around, Lillian."

"Yeah? That's great. I'm happy you were able to think things through and come to your decision."

I'd gone back with Kana to visit Hayate since I hadn't seen her for a while. And as luck would have it, there was a horse treat in my rucksack with her name on it. By the time I returned to my farm, it was a little after noon so I decided I'd go see what was going on in Bluebell. Besides, Aram was flying around to his heart's content and I figured I'd leave him alone for a bit and let him just adjust to his surroundings. With my cart attached to Levi, just in case I needed it for something, I climbed onto my horse and headed out.

On my way across the mountain, I would occasionally hop off Levi to forage for stuff in one of the many places I tended to find goodies at. I did have requests to fulfill, after all.

"Lillian!" I heard Georgia call out as I had just barely passed the animal shop. She was standing in the horse pasture brushing what looked to be a new horse.

"Hello Georgia!" I said as I hopped off Levi and led her close to the fence and nearer to Grady's shop. I decided I'd leave her there like I usually did.

I chatted with her for a while, particularly about the Moon Viewing Festival that had recently occurred over in Konohana. I'd also told her about my recent disagreement with Kana. Georgia seemed to think of Kana as a rival since he raised horses as well so she'd been none too pleased about that. But she was ultimately happy that we were back to being friends again.

When I ran into Ash and Laney, who were standing in the town square talking, they'd decided to continue the joke that had been circulating around town. "You know, I hear mud is good for the skin," Laney said with a knowing smile."

"You're right. Don't Lillian and Cam look even more radiant than usual, Laney? I mean, wow," Ash said with a laugh. I elbowed him lightly in the ribs and that only caused him to laugh harder.

I decided I wouldn't waste anymore energy on their joking and made my way over to the request board. I grabbed a couple of requests off before making my way over to the flower shop. When I saw it was empty, I remembered that it was Friday so the shop was closed. I looked behind me and saw Cam standing over by the flowerbed. He waved at me and I hurried over to join him.

"What's that about?" Cam asked, nodding his head toward town square where Ash and Laney were still laughing at us.

I rolled my eyes and folded the requests up, sticking them in my rucksack. "The same thing that's had them entertained for a while now. More mud jokes, you know?"

Cam let out an annoyed sigh. "I wish they'd quit already. I have enough going on as it is."

That got my attention pretty quickly. "What do you mean? Are you alright?" Concern was etched all over my face.

He let out a sigh and rubbed the back of his head, looking off to the side yet again. "Oh, it's just. . ." He looked down and tugged at his hat, which told me that he was definitely upset about something. "To be honest, my shop isn't doing too well lately. . ." he confided in me.

"What? Why, Cam? I mean, you're so good at what you do and you know so much."

He was quiet for a few seconds as he considered my question. "I think I know why. It's the way I interact with the customers. Unfortunately, I'm just not very good at it. . ."

"_Well_," I started with a grimace. "I'd have to say that you probably aren't the best when it comes to interacting. I have tons of fun talking with you so you seem to do fine with friends, but when it comes to people in general. . .I mean, would you have a mud battle with Grady?"

"Wait, what?" he asked, genuinely perplexed.

"You came over to my house and had this epic mud battle with me. You wouldn't do something like that with just anybody, though, would you?"

"Honestly, I'm surprised I did it at all," he told me as he thought back to his hilarious actions that day, sinking his hands into his pockets. "There's just something about you. . ." He stared at me in consternation as if he were trying very hard to figure something out, like something was alluding him and he wasn't sure what.

"Something that makes you want to throw mud in my face, huh?" I said, wondering what the feeling I was having was and why it intensified the longer he fixated his eyes on me.

He let out an exhalation of breath that sounded like a quiet little laugh. "Something like that. Anyway, I know I'm not the best when it comes to people. I want to fix that, but I'm not sure how. . .I mean, you're a people person, but I _know_ I'm not and. . ."

I stared at him rather thoughtfully as I considered his last sentence. He was right. Cam wasn't really a people person like I was. Everybody in Bluebell knew he was a good person, but schmoozing just wasn't his thing. He had a tendency to close himself off and it could take effort to open him up. When it came to his shop, though, I felt like he really needed to be the one to make an effort to open his own self up. He didn't have to be as effusive about it as I was, but he had to open up.

"I have an idea." The words were out of my mouth before I was even sure about what I was thinking.

"Huh? What is it?"

"I want to help you out with the store. I mean, it'll only be for a day, but maybe I can do something. Perhaps I can help you loosen up more and help with your customer interaction." Now that I'd come out with it, I had a little idea forming in my head as to what I could do to help him.

"You want to help me out with the store? Really?" he asked to confirm he'd heard me correctly, that I really wanted to try my hand at his flower shop. I nodded. ". . .Well, you're so good with people, maybe I'll learn something with you there. Would you mind helping out a little right now?"

I was surprised that he was so instantly receptive to the idea. He even seemed enthusiastic at my suggestion. "Of course," I told him. "I mean, it's your day off so if you want to open up the shop now then I'm in."


	13. Coaching Cam

**Author's Note: **Things are about to happen~! I've been eagerly awaiting my chance to share these next couple of chapters. I think we're due for a little drama. It can't always be smooth sailing!

* * *

The next thing I knew, Cam was in the process of getting his shop ready to open up and I was making a trip over to my cart to locate my bell. By the time I returned to his shop, Cam was ready. It took him no time at all since he was pretty organized. I guess one had to be to run a business, right? I stood behind the table with him and took a breath before ringing my bell. Cam gave me a 'what are you doing' look, but I ignored him for the moment and kept on ringing.

After a few more rings, I sat the bell down and turned my attention on Cam. "Okay Cam. You know _so_ much about flowers. And you're very good at taking care of them and making your products. But that's only half the battle. What else do you think you need to do?"

He looked rather reluctant, furrowing his eyebrows and rubbing his head. "Huh? Oh, that's right. . .I need to drum up some business. . ."

"Right. You can do it, Cam. Just try to be natural. Pretend like you're inviting a friend over to look at something. And say what you say as if you were talking to that friend."

"Uh, let's see. . .C-Come one, come all to Cam's Flowers!" he said very, very awkwardly and quiet self-consciously.

"Well. . ."

He sighed and shook his head before closing his eyes completely. "See, I'm just not cut out for this. . ."

"You can do it!" I encouraged him, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing it a little. "I know you have it in you, Cam. Try to bring out the guy who threw mud at me. He's in there. Okay? I have faith in you."

"Th-Thanks for the support. . ." he spoke with a more relaxed smile. "It's so strange. . .When I'm with you, I can do things that I could normally never do. . ."

He said it so earnestly and softly that I almost wondered if he'd even meant to say those words aloud. I felt unaccountably happy, hearing words like those come out of his mouth. If he could make everybody else in town feel as great as I was feeling at the moment then all of his flowers would sell like hotcakes.

"All right, let's see what we can sell!" Cam stated with a new-found enthusiasm and confidence that surprised me, smiling with charm that I was pretty sure he didn't even know he possessed.

I started ringing the bell again to get people's attention as Cam called out to try and draw people in. He was doing a much better job of it this time around, not stuttering at all and sounding much more confident in his delivery. I was proud of him! Rutger just happened to be walking by and certainly couldn't miss out on noticing us with as much of a commotion as we were making.

He hurried over to the table, curious as to what we were up to. "Well, well! You two seem raring to go today!"

Cam looked uncertain for a second, like he didn't know what to do now that he'd successfully attracted a customer to his shop. "Oh, well, that is. . ."

"Hmm?" Rutger stood there on his side of the table and stared at Cam. He stared for so long that I could tell Cam was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. Finally, though, Rutger gave him a great big smile. "You've really changed recently, Cam!"

"Huh?" was all that Cam said.

"Even as a child, you never let your emotions show much," Rutger declared with a twinkle in his eye. "But lately, you seem a lot more animated!" He then turned to focus in on me. "It must be thanks to you, Lillian!"

"Huh? M-Me?" I said, pointing at myself as if there must be some other Lillian somewhere nearby.

Rutger was staring at me and then Cam turned and stared at me and I suddenly felt so flustered. Cam smiled warmly and then turned to look back at Rutger. "Well, if you say so, Mayor, then it must be true," he told him with that aforementioned charm he was seemingly oblivious to.

"Ha ha ha!" Rutger laughed, beyond pleased with the fun he was having. "Ah, to be young and in love. . ."

I kind of choked on air and had myself a little coughing fit. Cam patted my back as he tried to set Rutger straight. "Huh?! I. . .I think you've got the wrong idea, Mayor!"

I was pretty sure my cheeks were burning on account of how embarrassed and awkward I felt at that exact moment. Rutger apparently decided he'd taken his fun far enough, because he laid off us. "Anyway, I think I'll buy Rose some flowers! I haven't done that in a while now! I'll take this one here!" He pointed at a single white rose.

"Thank you very much, Mayor," Cam said as he handed the flower over in exchange for the money. When Rutger was gone, Cam turned and looked at me. I avoided his gaze because Rutger had just made things all kinds of weird. "It looks like he got the wrong idea about us. . .Sorry about that. . ."

"Y-You don't have to be sorry," I said before I took a deep breath and finally dared to look at him. "It doesn't bother me."

Cam tugged at his hat and color started flooding into his cheeks. Now his face was about as red as I was sure mine probably was. I tried to swallow despite the dry feeling I suddenly had in my mouth.

"Oh, well, if it doesn't bother you, nevermind, then! Let's keep working!"

And so I managed to calm myself back down and started ringing my bell again. Cam called out to people with all the composure and confidence he'd had while dealing with Rutger. I was impressed. And I wasn't the only one because after Rutger's purchase, it seemed everybody in town had decided to stop by Cam's shop. When closing time arrived, Cam let out a little whistle.

"Wow!" he exclaimed as he looked at the empty table. "I never thought we'd be able to sell everything! It's all because of your help, Lillian. . .And I think I handled the customers better than I usually do."

"Thanks, but all I did was ring a bell. I think that was all you, Cam," I informed him. "And you _definitely_ handled the customers better. You were great."

As I put my bell inside my rucksack and returned the rucksack to my back, Cam said "I'm so glad I asked you for advice. Thank you, Lillian."

"You're welcome. I'm glad I could help."

I think he was blushing again as he said "Hey, want to stop by the cafe on our way home? I'd like to buy you tea or something to thank you."

Whoa, Cam wanted to buy me tea? Or something? My heart did that boom-clap thing again. And it did it more than once. It was like. . .three times. And I did not understand why it was doing that. More like my mind wasn't ready to come to terms with the reason yet. "Y-Yeah. I'd like that. I'd really like that."

And so time passed. It felt like so many more things had happened within just a couple weeks of autumn than they had all summer. The last week of autumn came around, though, and that meant the fall crop festival in Konohana. I had worked pretty darn hard all season long to cultivate a carrot that would shock and amaze. And I actually succeeded! My carrot took first place and I felt all kinds of accomplished for that. My hard work had paid off.

A couple of days after that was Howard's birthday. And Howard, naturally, had thrown himself a great party! He'd even gotten all fancy and sent invites out in the mail. Everybody had a great time, including Cam. It seemed that since that day I helped him out at his shop, he'd been doing better than ever. And that extended to how he acted with people in general. He was making a real effort to be more open and personable. He still wasn't about to tell any jokes, but he was coming out of his shell in his own way. Just as long as he was staying true to himself and felt comfortable, though, I was happy for him.

The next cooking festival came and the category was dessert. My dish of choice was honey cake. I'd made things a little more interesting by using fruit honey that I'd gotten as a reward for a request I'd completed. So Pierre had been pleasantly surprised when he bit into it and ascertained the fruity taste the different honey had brought to it.

And then. . .And then. . . "It's as if it was made by the Harvest Goddess herself!" Pierre declared after he took a bite of my cake.

Finally! It finally happened! Pierre said it! He gave me an approving smile and moved on to my teammate's dishes. Nori and Kana were the ones I was working with this time around and they got good reviews as well. Team Bluebell had Jessica, Laney, and Cam on their side. It was a tight race, but in the end. . .Pierre declared Team Konohana to be the winners!

I made a mental note to thank Yun later because she had given me some really helpful pointers. That, along with advice Howard had given me, I felt helped to push me over the edge.

It seemed as if the tide was starting to turn with the mayors. They weren't bickering as badly as they normally would and they didn't immediately rush to their opposite sides of the mountain. Instead, they walked calmly to their respective villages. As a result, some of the villagers didn't feel like leaving right away and stayed behind to chat a little.

I walked over to where the Bluebell villagers were talking amongs themselves. "Dessert, huh?" I said when I ended up next to Cam. "I thought you weren't really a fan of sweet stuff."

"You don't have to eat it to cook it," Cam told me as if that should be obvious.

"That's probably why we lost," Laney said as she put an arm around my shoulder. "Lillian, we _need_ you on our team. If I get stuck in the dessert category with Cam again. . ."

"Shhh," I joked as I put my hands over Cam's ears. "You're going to hurt his feelings."

Howard called to Laney and she stopped teasing her would-be brother so she could go see what her father wanted.

"Good job, Lillian!" Eileen said as she patted me on the back and headed down the mountain.

"Thanks!" I called out to her before I turned back to Cam to get a few more words in with him before we both headed home. I kept getting the oddest sensation. It was like somebody was staring at me. I looked around and I didn't see anything strange. Nori came bounding over and joined our conversation briefly before Reina decided to come over, too. Her and Cam started talking about plants and the more they got into it, the easier it seemed to be for them to talk to each other. While they were doing that, I went to make an offering to the Harvest Goddess.

I got that strange feeling again, like somebody was watching me. I looked to my left and saw nothing out of the ordinary. I did catch a glimpse of a brunette ponytail as Kana made his way down the mountain with this pinched look on his face, but other than that there was nothing.

The next day, I decided I'd switch things up and go to Bluebell as soon as I was done with work on my farm. I would wait to make my Konohana rounds when it got back into town if I had the time. When I made it to Bluebell, I decided to go take a look at the farm. It was exactly as I'd left it. And the flowers in the boxes outside the house, of course, were just as well cared for as I expected now that I knew Cam was looking after them. I knew I would be moving back to Bluebell soon and I felt excited about it. I left Levi over by Georgia and fulfilled a request or two that I was running out of time to get done, chatting with the good people of Bluebell in the process.

When I made it to Cam's shop, he turned his back on me and I felt slightly taken aback. Now what in the world could prompt him to do something like _that_ again?

"Hey now, mister. Don't go pulling that on me again," I said as I tugged on his shoulder. He turned around and looked at me with this weird look on his face. There wasn't any coldness in his eyes, though. Just confusion and a little anger. "Cam, what's up?"

"I'm not really in the mood to talk right now," he told me with a sigh as he massaged the bridge of his nose between his eyes.

"I'm sorry. Why? Did something happen?" I felt worried. Something was going on. I could feel it. I just needed him to tell me what it was.

"Maybe I'm misinterpreting things, but. . ."

"But?" I prompted.

"It's stupid," he told me. I stared at him with a raised eyebrow. "You know that guy named Kana, don't you?"

Both of my eyebrows shot up at that. "Yeah. He's my friend and neighbor over in Konohana. What does he have to do with this?"

"I told you it was stupid. . ." When it became clear I wasn't leaving until he filled me in on what happened, he gave in. "Okay, well he made the trip over here all the way from Konohana just to talk to me."

"What?" I said, shaking my head and not understanding this. "What business does he have with you? Wait. . .Oh, Nori mentioned you while we were at the Moon Viewing Festival. Did he come for some flowers?" Then again, flowers weren't exactly Kana's cup of tea, so that didn't make any sense to me.

Cam shook his own head at that. "No. He came and told me that I'd better stay away from you. I told him you're my friend and I'm not about to stay away from you because some random stranger thinks he has a say so. And besides, you're your own person and. . ."

"He did what?" I interrupted. I counted to ten in my head before I tried speaking again. "Kana tried to tell you to stay away from me?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "I suggested that we go somewhere more private since I didn't want to discuss something like that with him in the middle of town. So we went over by the tunnel. And then he went on to say that you were his girl and I should stay out the way of that. I told him that you'd certainly never mentioned something like that to me so I didn't believe it. But he insisted that you were his and that I should stay away. I told him I wasn't going to do that." He took a moment to collect his thoughts and frowned. "Look, I'm sorry I said I didn't want to talk. I've just been so angry ever since he came here this morning and I wasn't sure how I was going to recount the ordeal to you."

"It's okay," I told him as I took the flower I'd brought for him out of my rucksack and sat it down on the table. It was one of the flowers I'd grown myself. "I'm not mad at you. But I _am_ about to go have myself a talk with Kana."

"Lillian," he called when I turned around and took off stomping toward where I'd left my horse.

But I ignored him. I was an angry woman on a mission. Where in the world did Kana get off traveling all the way across the mountain to tell my friend to stay away from me? I climbed back up on Levi and started back down the mountain. When I finally made it through the town gates, it started to rain. And I'd forgotten to bring my umbrella with me. Then again, it wouldn't have done me any good while I was on my horse. Great. I was soaking wet. I headed straight toward my farm. Levi didn't like being out in the rain if she didn't have to and I wasn't about to make her stand outside of Kana's house in the middle of it while I gave him a piece of my mind. So imagine my surprise when I made it back onto my farm and noticed a figure walking away from my house. It was Kana.


	14. Stormy Weather and Stormy Feelings

**Author's Note:** I rewrote it more than once. Toned it down. You'll know what I'm referring to when you get there. Time for a chapter I had a really fun time thinking up~! I wonder what everybody will think about the events about to take place. ^_~

* * *

I immediately rode over to the barn and got Levi inside. No sooner than I was done taking care of her and making sure all of my other animals were accounted for, I marched back out into the rain. Lightning crackled above me and thunder boomed. Kana had apparently stayed put because I found him right in front of my house.

"Hey, Lillian, I. . ."

"You have your nerve," I said in a surprisingly quiet voice.

"I can't hear you. What was that?" he asked, trying to hear over the downpour.

"I said you have your nerve!" I yelled at him as I pushed him out of my way so I could get into my own house.

The floor was immediately soaked as I stomped in and my pets must have sensed how mad I was because they cleared all the way over to the other side of the room. Not even Rufus was making a move toward me. Kana filed in after me and shut the door.

"Lillian, what has gotten into you?" he asked as I rounded on him.

"Maybe it's slipped your mind since this morning. I'll jog your memory. You took yourself a little trip over to Bluebell, right?"

"Oh," was all he said.

"_Oh_? Oh? Is that all you have to say for yourself?" I certainly couldn't believe my ears.

"I bet he just couldn't wait to tell you all about that," Kana said angrily, clenching his wet fists at his sides.

"Actually, he really didn't want to since he's such a decent guy and all. I had to pry it out of him. Where do you get off, Kana, trying to dictate who can and can't see me?!"

"Leave it alone, Lillian," he said as he struggled to keep his temper in check.

Too bad that I couldn't keep my own in check. "You don't have any say in who I can and can't be friends with. How could you traipse over there and bother Cam at his place of work?" True, I'd done that before on Flower Day, but that was entirely different.

Kana had nothing to say, which only made me angrier.

"And what is this nonsense about you telling him I'm your girl? Because the last time I checked, Kana, I'm a single woman and. . ."

The next thing I knew, Kana was directly in front of me. He pulled me toward him before crushing my mouth under his. It was like my mind shut off and instinct took over. It was like I was suddenly disconnected from my body yet still present at the same time. I wasn't present enough to think, only feel. He ran his hands down my back and I grasped his arms, exploring the muscles there. He broke the kiss and nudged my head to the side before trailing kisses down my neck, across my shoulder, and back again. The ability to think was still eluding me.

Kana's mouth returned to mine and he kissed me with such intensity and such fervor. It was like he wanted to do so much all at once and wanted to pack as much as he could into a single second. The day had been just warm enough for me to get away with long sleeves without a light jacket. He started pulling up the bottom of my shirt and that snapped me out of whatever this was I was suddenly in. I quickly came back to my senses and pushed him back. He stumbled, but immediately caught his footing. And that wasn't easily done considering the floor was slippery from the rain we'd brought in. "Kana, what? I. . .You. . .No."

"Lillian, I. . ." he said, as breathless as I was.

"_No_," I said far more firmly than before. "No. Listen. You're my friend and I care about you. And. . .I'll admit that you're an attractive guy, Kana. You _definitely_ are." I took a deep breath as I tried not to think about the way his lips had felt against mine and how great his hands had felt. . . Because as good as that had felt. . .at the same time, it had felt wrong. Just. . .wrong. "I'm sorry, but. . .this can't happen."

Kana stared down at me with the same intensity I'd felt in his kiss. It was this strange frustration mixed with anger and now with disappointment. He finally broke eye contact and went to my door. He threw it open so hard that it slammed against the wall as he stomped back out into the rain.

The next day I felt kind of numb. I woke up. I brushed my teeth. I fed my pets. I skipped breakfast because I definitely did _not_ have an appetite. At least I hadn't caught a cold from being soaked the previous day. I went about my chores on my farm. The entire time, I was trying to replay things in my head. I tried to figure it out. Kana, he. . .And then I shut the book on those thoughts. No, I would _not_ think about that. When I was done seeing to my livestock and harvesting my crops, I got my sickle and went to work on clearing my field like I always did toward the end of the season. After that, I went back inside my house.

It was Ayame's birthday and whether I felt numb and angry and confused inside or not, I was going to proceed with this part of my day as I had planned. Hiro had mentioned to me that Ayame's favorite food was quiche. We'd talked about it one day when we were hanging out in his room talking about cooking.

Putting the nice hot quiche inside a container, I closed it up in my rucksack and headed out. I saddled up Levi and left my farm, galloping straight past Kana's house and not even sparing it a glance. If I did, I'd probably get more mad and confused than I already was.

"You behave yourself," I told Levi as I left her near the hedges in front of the clinic. I strolled inside and put on a smile for the good doctor's benefit. "Good morning!"

"Lillian," Hiro said, looking at the clock on the wall. "It's after noon."

"Oh, I. . ." I followed his gaze and frowned. "I guess you're right. I suppose I lost track of the time."

"Lillian, you look awful," Ayame said as she came out from behind the counter and pressed her hand against my forehead. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I said as she frowned with concern.

"Well, you don't seem to have a fever, so. . ."

"Hey, I hear it's somebody's birthday today." I took off my rucksack and pulled the food out. "Here you go."

She took it and opened the lid curiously. Her face lit up when she saw what it was. "It's quiche!" she said excitedly. "And it's a birthday present? Thank you, Lillian!"

The smile I gave her then was genuine. "You're welcome. I'm glad you like it!"

"I'm going to eat this right now," she informed me as she headed toward the stairs. "This can be my lunch!"

Hiro was still watching me as I closed my rucksack and put it back on. "Are you positively certain you are fine, Lillian? Please, do not neglect your health. Might you take the day to go home and rest?"

"Don't worry about it," I told him as I headed toward the door. "I'm fine. I just have some stuff on my mind." I paused at the door. "Hey, listen. I'm gonna go see Ina and ask to move back to Bluebell."

"What?! Lillian, this is indeed a sudden decision," he exclaimed, closing the book he'd had open in front of him.

"No it's not. I'd planned on spending winter in Bluebell before I even came here for autumn. But don't worry, I'll still be around like I was in summer. So we'll still see each other."

He sadly looked down at the closed book. "Is there nothing to be said to change your mind?"

"I'm afraid not. Don't be sad, though. I promise I'll be around." I left the doorway and he met me in front of the counter for a hug. "You know, someday the tunnel will be open again. And then it won't matter who lives in what town. Everybody will be able to see each other whenever they want."

"I will do my utmost to be patient until then," he said as we pulled away.

After I left the clinic, I went to Town Hall and told Ina my plans. She hadn't been entirely surprised since we'd been through this before, but she was just as kind as she'd been the previous time, assuring me I could come back whenever I wanted.

As she went to contact Rutger and let him know we were coming, I got started on saying my goodbyes. Rahi was bummed out, but I promised him I'd come back to play with him and Ying soon. Aside from Hiro, Nori probably took the news the hardest. I couldn't hold out on Nori, I figured out, so we'd stood outside Gombe's shop and I relayed the story of what happened with me and Cam and Kana to her. She clucked her tongue and shook her head in disapproval of Kana's actions. But she understood that me moving back to Bluebell had absolutely nothing to do with him. Well, _mostly_ nothing to do with him. It was something that had been decided long before what happened had happened. So she accepted that. She also promised she wasn't going to let Kana know that she knew. The thing with Kana was my mess to deal with and I wasn't ready to deal with it yet.

When I was done saying my farewells to everybody in town, well, with the exception of Kana. . .I hurried back to my house and packed my stuff up. This time, I actually managed to have everything done before the mayor showed up to escort me across the mountain. In fact, I was just getting Aram put inside his cage when Ina showed up at my door.

"Well, are you all ready to go, Lillian?" she asked me as I closed the door of Aram's cage. All the rest of my animals were ready to go. Aram was the last one.

"Uh-huh. Everything's ready," I assured her. "Let's go."

Once I loaded Aram up, we climbed onto the cart and started on our way.

"You know," Ina ventured after a little while. "You're a really hard worker, Lillian. And everybody in Konohana loves you. You're a good role model for Rahi. I think that you're somebody he can definitely look up to."

I glanced over at her. "Wow, really? I mean, I'm honored you'd say something like that, Ina. Rahi's a great kid. Thank you."

This time, when the mayors met up outside of Bluebell, I could see what Reina was talking about. Maybe they were better than they had previously been the last season. And maybe they were better than they'd been throughout the years when I didn't know them. There was hope for the two towns being connected again someday after all.

Rutger and I headed back to my Bluebell farm and he helped me get everything unpacked and settled, welcoming me back with open arms. When he left, though, I felt relieved. I wanted to be alone. Rummaging through my storage to locate a bottle of fruit wine I had, I changed into my pajamas and stared at the bottle. I shook my head and put it back. No, I wouldn't be turning to the wine to deal with the stress Kana had put on me. Instead, I was going to. . .to. . .stuff my face full of food until I couldn't fit into my pants the next day!

Yeah, that's right. My appetite had come back and it'd come back with a vengeance. I went into the kitchen and cooked whatever I thought would make me feel better and I sat down at my table to stuff my face. That ended up being macaroni and cheese, spring rolls, and a large plate of chocolate cookies. An odd combination, I know, but it hit the spot. I was finishing off my last cookie when I heard a knock on my door. Night barked just in case I hadn't heard.

"I'm going, I'm going," I told him as I shuffled off toward the door and opened it up.

"Hello, Lillian! Rutger told us you were moving back so we made you some. . .Oh my," Laney wasn't sure what to say when she got a look at me.

"Dear goddess," Georgia drawled with a hand on her chest.

"Thank you," I said as I took the basket holding the cheesecake from Laney.

Georgia closed the door and they followed me into the dining room as I sat the cake on the table and grabbed a knife to cut a piece. "Lillian, are you alright?"

"Yep. Sure. Just dandy. Why ever would you ask that?" I asked, feigning ignorance as I shoved the piece of cake into my mouth whole.

"Well, you, errr. . ."

"Lillian. Why don't you just. . .finish your piece of cake and then go take a bath. Georgia and I will clean those dishes up for you and when you get out, you can tell us what's bothering you?"

I swallowed the rest of that piece of cheesecake and looked down at the crumbs that had fallen onto the front of my shirt. I also suspected I had chocolate somewhere on my face. With a sigh, I stood up from the table and grabbed another set of pajamas before stalking off to the bathroom. I soaked in there for quite a while before I felt like coming out. It was the realization that I was kind of being a drama queen at the moment and _way_ too mopey over the entire ordeal that prompted me to get out the tub, get my clothes on, and see what Laney and Georgia were up to. They were at my dining room table, both of them enjoying some tea. It didn't escape my notice that somebody, most likely Laney, had fixed me a cup of coffee.

I sat down at the table with them and wrapped my hands around the cup before taking a sip. Laney really did make the best coffee. I certainly wasn't going to tell Howard that, though.

"_Sooooo_," Georgia began after I took a few more sips. "Care to tell us what's got you in such a conundrum?"

I sat my cup down and frowned as I thought back on what had happened. "Okay, so this is how it started, I guess," I told them as I began my strange, strange story. The two of them sat there and listened intently, giving me nothing less than their full attention.

"I'm sorry, what? He came all the way to Bluebell just to accost Cam?" Laney asked, instantly upset on Cam's behalf once my little tale had come to an end. "Sweet dumplings," she said angrily, coming up with another substitute for a worse phrase.

"Yeah. And it makes no sense because no matter how it is Kana feels about me, Cam and I are friends. I mean, what's next? Is he going to go to the clinic in Konohana and tell Hiro we can't hang out anymore either?!" I groaned.

"So Kana just up and kissed you?" Georgia chipped in, shaking her head with an angry sigh. Her and Laney were obviously digesting two different parts of my story at the moment. "That fool."

"Did you like it?" Laney asked, seemingly catching up to where the conversation was now.

"I. . .I. . .I don't know. I mean, I was already fired up from yelling at him and the next thing I knew, he was kissing me. It's like my mind took a vacation and my body just responded to him on its own accord. . ."

"That doesn't really answer the question, though," Laney pressed. "Did you like it?"

I stared down at the contents of my cup as I considered that. "Kana. . .he's generally a nice guy. He's funny. He tends to be easy to be around. And he's easy on the eyes." I took a drink of my coffee before I finished my train of thought. "He _is _a good kisser, too. It's just. . .However it is he feels about me, I can't say that I feel the same way about him. So, Laney, no. It was a good kiss, but I didn't like it."

"Then I reckon," Georgia said as she cut me another piece of cheesecake and put it on a plate with a fork, sitting it down in front of me. "Sooner or later you're gonna have to stop avoiding that fella and let him know that."


	15. Mending Fences

I woke up on the first day of winter and it was _cold_. Just like that, the weather had switched itself again. Warm to hot. Hot to cool. Now cool to cold. That was my year in a nutshell. I went to a window and I pushed the curtain aside. Snow. Snow! It was snowing! I'm telling you, I jumped up and down with the glee of a small child. My dogs didn't know what I was so excited about, but my excitement made them excited, too.

When I turned the radio on, the weather report informed me that it was going to be a snowy day all day. The next day, however, it wouldn't start snowing until some time in the afternoon. Now that I knew that, I decided I would listen to some music. I felt much better than I had the last few days. I felt more normal, more like myself. As a kind of 'welcome to winter' thing I made myself a farmer's breakfast, some toast, and a cup of coffee. After my teeth were brushed, I went through my winter clothes to find something warm to put on and headed outside to see what my animals were up to.

Standing there in front of my door, I breathed in the cold morning air and it gave me a little clarity. Georgia was right. I did need to talk to Kana soon. Because while I'd told him we weren't going to be together right before he stormed out of my house before, I needed to say it to him again. Only, I needed to say it calmly and with a clear head. Yeah, I didn't feel that way for Kana. And yeah, it was wrong for him to go confront Cam the way he had. Still, though, I didn't want to lose his friendship. He was still a good guy. He'd just gotten caught up in his emotions. I really hoped it wasn't too late for the whole thing to be fixed.

As I went about tending to my livestock, I decided it was about time for me to add some more. I'd been trying to decide between focusing on raising livestock or growing crops. I was starting to think that I would focus more on raising livestock. I mean, I would still grow crops, of course, but I wanted to make the animals more of a priority. I was even thinking about asking Eileen to do some expansions to the farm. That meant I was seriously considering making Bluebell a more permanent home for me. I had really missed Bluebell and being back just felt. . .right. The decision wasn't final yet, but it was something I was definitely thinking about.

With my scarf wrapped snugly around my neck, I took off by foot toward Bluebell, pausing to ship off some goods. And then I decided to go right back to the farm and fetch Levi and my cart before heading into town. As usual, as soon as I made it there, Georgia spotted me. She stopped tending to her beloved Dakota and came over to me. Dakota was to Georgia what Hayate was to Kana.

"How are you today?" she asked me, concerned. "D'you feel better?" I couldn't really blame her after the spectacle I'd made of myself the other day in my house. It was one kiss and I'd acted like it was the end of the world. But. . .I'd been caught by total and complete surprise. I'd never realized Kana had those feelings for me and I'd had absolutely no idea how to deal with that.

"I'm better. Sorry I was such a baby the other day."

"Oh, don't say that," Georgia chastised. "You were distraught."

"At any rate, I'm going to talk to Kana soon and clear everything up. I have my head back on straight and I'm okay now."

"Glad to hear it." She smiled warmly and gave my arm a squeeze of encouragement. I was surprised she was taking the entire situation in such a relatively calm way considering how hot under the collar her rival tended to get her.

"Hullo, Lillian," Grady called as he poked his head out the front door of his shop.

"Hey there, Grady," I called back with a wave.

When he started motioning for her to come over, Georgia gave me an apologetic smile. "Oh shoot, he needs something so I guess we'll have to talk more about this another time."

"Sure thing," I agreed as she climbed over the fence and went to see what her father needed.

I hadn't gone into town the previous day because I'd made myself sick from all that food I'd crammed down my throat before. And then when I'd felt a bit better, I'd done a little fishing. So it was my first official day back in the town of Bluebell. As I hopped over the fence into the pasture area behind Jessica's shop, Ash met me halfway and hugged me. He even lifted me up off the ground.

"Welcome back to citizenship! I was starting to think we'd have to deport you if you kept barging into our town while living in Konohana," he said as he sat me back down on my feet.

"Oh whatever," I told him with a laugh as I smacked his arm playfully. "You know you were always happy to see me."

"I can't argue with that," he admitted. "So. . .You know, Cam told me what happened."

I didn't have to ask what he was talking about. Since he was Cam's best friend, I was guessing our resident florist had filled him in about Kana's trip to Bluebell.

"Yeah? I'm going to be having a discussion with Kana soon and I'll get everything cleared up."

"I thought you'd already gone to talk to him," Ash said with a confused look.

Oh yeah. The last time I'd seen Cam, I'd been storming off to have a. . .chat. . .with Kana. "I did, but that didn't end so well. I'm going in for round two and I'm pretty sure it'll end better this time."

"What happened with round one?"

Geez, Ash was awfully curious today. "Don't worry about it."

He seemed to get the message that I wasn't about to go all up into the details. I wasn't going to make a big deal out of it. I'd only told Nori, Laney, and Georgia all of the details and I was going to keep it that way. Well, with the exception of Reina who I didn't mind Nori filling in. Still, though, I was trying to keep the pool of people limited.

After my visit with Ash, I did a little shopping and I checked out the request board and did my happy dance. The requests were interesting, just as I'd figured they'd be. Just as I thought she would, Eileen had put a request up for the tunnel. Even if I had noticed the mayors had made progress, though, I thought that maybe they weren't quite ready yet for that final expansion to happen. So I figured I'd probably go talk to her later or the next day about doing some renovations to the farm instead.

Another request on the board caught my eye and it raised my interest. I went over to my cart and got what I needed before going straight to the source. It wasn't quite ten yet, so Cam was still preparing to open his shop. This time he was doing it at a leisurely pace since he didn't have to be in rush mode.

"So, I heard you need some fish," I addressed him, waving the request around in my hand.

"What. . .?" It took him a second to make the connection between my words and the paper moving back and forth in my hand. "Oh, so you saw my request. You're taking it on?"

"Yep. It says here that you, my good sir, are in the market for two small shishamos."

"So it does," he agreed.

"As luck would have it, I went fishing yesterday. So you are now the proud owner of some very fresh fish. Congratulations." I handed the package I'd prepared over to Cam. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips out of amusement.

"You work quick." Cam examined the contents before sitting it on the table. "Nice work. Thanks for the help, Lillian."

"You're welcome. You know, this request tells me that you found a little something. A stray cat?"

"Oh, uh, yeah. That's why I needed the fish. You see, I came across this cat this morning. She was wet and hungry and. . .well I couldn't just leave her there the way she was, right? I dried her off so she wouldn't catch cold, but I can't keep her. She's not allowed to stay at the cafe. I felt that the least I could do was give her a treat and. . ." He looked over at me and rubbed the back of his head, his brows furrowed from confusion. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?" Okay, so I had this seriously silly smile on my face that I was definitely aware of. That was because I found him absolutely adorable at that moment. Like. . .hearing him talk about helping that poor little cat made me want to give him a hug and squeeze him so hard that he had a difficult time breathing. "It's just such a cute story!" I couldn't stop myself from admitting.

I think I saw his cheeks pink a little as he looked over toward the cafe. "Anyway, I guess I should give you your reward now. Can you hang on for a second?"

When I nodded, he went inside to retrieve whatever it was he intended to give to me. I just kept on smiling as I watched him go. Who knew he was such a softie when it came to cats? Oh yes, it was adorable. I felt all warm and fuzzy on the inside.

When he came back, he was carrying a can. "Ah, black tea?" I inquired as he handed it over to me.

"Yes. You can have this, too." He handed me some money and I slipped it into my pocket.

"So," he began as he put his hands in his pockets. "I haven't talked to you in a few days. Not since you left to talk to. . .Kana. Did you find him?"

I'd almost forgotten about that. I should have expected he'd be curious about what happened after I left him before. "I found him, yeah. He was waiting outside my house."

"So you got to talk to him?"

I didn't find it necessary to fill Cam in about the kiss that came before the talking. For some reason, though, I felt strange about keeping it from him even though I felt fine about not telling Ash. . ."Yeah. Look, I'm sorry about Kana, okay? He. . .well I didn't know it before, but he has feelings for me. I guess he just assumed that you and I were. . .Anyway, I don't want you being bothered by that."

"It doesn't bother me," he said so quietly I almost missed it.

I stood there kind of awkwardly and pushed some hair back behind my ear. Strangely, I was somewhere between nauseous and elated. "It doesn't?"

"No."

I felt my face growing hot and I wasn't sure what to say to that so I said "I'm going to talk to him again when I go to Konohana. Hopefully we can stay friends because friendship is all I can offer him."

Cam let out a sigh that almost sounded like relief. "I hope you can, too."

We'd talked about that long enough. I really felt we needed to change the subject so I did some shopping instead. I bought some gentian seeds from Cam and had him make me a blue rose bouquet. My house needed some fresh flowers and he was the man to help make that happen.

When that was done, I went inside the cafe and Howard was pretty happy to see me. "Lillian! I'm so happy you moved back! How about I make you a yummy cafe au lait and then I can get you caught up on all the juicy gossip?"

"That sounds delicious. And warm," I told him as I removed my coat and hung it up. I chose a table and sat down to wait.

"Can I get you something to eat to go along with that?" Laney asked as she came over to the table I'd sat down at.

I thought that over and shook my head. "I had a big breakfast, so I think I'm good."

She gave me a teasing smile and I had a feeling I already knew what was going to come out of her mouth before it did. "Did you bake some chocolate cookies this morning, Lillian?"

I rolled my eyes, but laughed at that. "No, Laney, I didn't."

"I'm so glad you're doing better," she told me before she bent down to give me a little hug and then left me alone.

I waited on Howard to fix up my drink and realized something. I was sitting at the same table I'd sat at before when Cam had bought me tea after I'd helped him at his shop. Howard had been fluttering all over the place acting really weird while Cam and I had a very lovely chat.

Glancing out the window, I could see him standing there at his shop with the show falling around him and the wind tousling his hair. He tugged his hat down on his head a little more and checked to make sure his jacket was zipped all the way. I hoped he didn't catch a cold from standing outside all day waiting for customers. Somebody caught his eye and he put on what I now deemed his salesman smile and called them over. Yeah, he was definitely making quite an effort these days.

"Here's your drink!" Howard said, sitting a pretty little cup on an equally pretty saucer down in front of me.

Once my cup was drained, I felt properly warmed up, and Howard had dished on some of that gossip he'd wanted to, I headed out again. The day was starting to get away from me and I still had to get over to Konohana and check out the request board. Everything was white and peaceful as I made my way over the mountain. I stopped to give my offering to the Harvest Goddess and I spotted Mikhail at the mountaintop. I decided to talk to him for a little while so we could catch up. I still didn't know him that well yet, but he struck me as a good guy. Especially after he'd helped keep an eye on Dirk before.

Once I did make it to Konohana, I stopped in front of Kana's. I noticed that Hayate was out in the pasture and so did Levi. She went over to the fence and Hayate met her there. The two of them seemed to be having some kind of a horse communication so I left them to it and went inside Kana's shop. Still, though, I knew Hayate wasn't the young and strong horse she once was. I hoped she wouldn't stay out there too long and get sick. That would worry Kana half to death.

Kana was hunched over the counter writing something down on a sheet of paper. He didn't even notice me when I came in. I knocked on the door frame to get his attention. When he looked up, the pen fell from his hand and his mouth dropped open. "L-Lillian?"

"Uh, yeah. . ." I said as I shut the door behind me and walked about halfway into the room. "I've been wanting to talk to you."

"I've been wanting to talk to you, too," he said quickly. "I was just. . .I was just writing you a letter. I was going to ask Dirk to deliver it to you since I wasn't sure if you'd want to see me or. . ."

He trailed off and we both stood there quietly for a few moments without looking at each other. I finally sighed and went up to the counter. "Well, I'm here to see you now."

"Look, Lillian. I. . .I'm sorry, okay? I know I shouldn't have said those things to Cam and I know I shouldn't have kissed you. I just. . ." He stared down at the letter he'd been writing me with a frown.

"You _should_ be sorry for saying what you did to Cam. But don't feel sorry for kissing me, Kana."

He looked up at me hopefully and I felt really, _really_ bad. "Does that mean. . .?"

I give him a rueful shake of my head. "I'm sorry, it doesn't. But Kana. . .I didn't know that you felt that way about me before the other day. I don't want you to feel sorry for kissing me because I don't want you to feel sorry for expressing those feelings, alright? I thank you for letting me know about your feelings and I'm flattered by them, but I don't return them. Kana, you're a great guy. You're tall, dark, and handsome. You're nice and you're funny. You're great with animals. _And _you're a good kisser. You're a catch. You're going to make some lucky lady out there very happy one of these days. That lady just isn't me."

Kana sighed as he digested my words. He put his arms behind his head and rested his hands on the back of his neck. "Where does that leave us?" he asked then. "Where do we go from here?"

I took a horse treat from Bluebell out of my rucksack and sat it down on the counter. "How about we keep on being friends?"

Kana picked the horse treat up and gave me a smile. It was an actual, genuine smile. Right then, I felt the pieces falling back into place. I knew for sure that our relationship would be okay.

"Friends, huh? Sure. That sounds good to me."


	16. Winter Snow Means Snowball Fights

**Author's Note: **Considering how the weather has been here, I felt it was time for a little winter fun. Plus, I couldn't help but give Lillian a push in the right direction. . .

* * *

I made the decision not to use the Konohana farm to grow anything during winter. Gombe told me that the only seeds that would be available to me were daikon. So I decided now was a great time to start focusing less on growing crops and focus more on raising livestock. I would grow a little daikon at the Bluebell farm and Cam had a couple different kinds of flower seeds for me to try out. And that would be it.

Therefore, I'd bought another cow, another sheep, and another chicken! And they were all little babies and they were so cute! And I was looking forward to the next year since Jessica informed me she'd be getting some interesting and new animals in for me to try my hand at raising. Ash had helped me get them all settled in on the farm and he'd walked me back into town, talking about how Cheryl was itching to have some winter fun. I'd suggested making a snowman or some snow angels. Cheryl, apparently, had been there and done that already and now needed something else to entertain her.

I managed to make it over to the cafe in time to keep my lunch date with Laney. Georgia had been planning on joining us, but she'd gotten caught up with something at Grady's shop that she wouldn't be done with in time to make it. Howard had told me not too long ago about how he'd planned on making a dessert for Laney, only to be told that she was on a diet. Apparently that diet was now broken because Laney was determined to get her fair share of sweets. I watched her with an amused face as she took a bite of cherry pie. She'd been right in the middle of telling me something but got distracted when the pie made its way onto her fork.

"He's just like a brother to me and I thought I knew like. . .every side Cam had to offer, but he has been acting so different lately," Laney commented, finally continuing her story. "He came out of his room the other morning and I greeted him as I usually would and he greeted me back of course, but when I looked over at him he gave me just. . .the biggest smile! I mean, it's not like Cam is an unhappy person or anything, but for him to actually just outright show his feelings like that is weird. Weird in a good way, but it's still weird. . ." she trailed off, going for more pie.

"He has a great smile," I mumbled, losing myself in my own thoughts about Cam.

"What was that?" Laney asked, looking up from her pie with a tilt of her head. "I couldn't hear what you were saying."

"Huh?" I certainly hadn't realized I'd said that out loud. "I'm just happy for him, you know? I hope he continues to have reasons to smile more often."

Laney gave me a shrug and then returned to her pie. She wasn't done talking, though. "And that mud fight you two had? I never would have thought Cam would do something like that! We all had our fair share of snowball fights when we were kids, but a mud fight?"

Cam had actually been talking about a snowball fight he had with Ash and Laney just the previous day as we hung out by the river. Of course, that had been right before we'd noticed a cat on the little island that had been in need of help. After I saved him, Cam had wanted to go looking for his owner. He'd been so concerned and worried and determined. In the end, Nico the cat had been reunited with his owner. And I was further drawn in by Cam's soft spot for cats.

"I was surprised, too," I chirped in as she attacked another piece of cherry pie she'd had waiting. At least she wasn't shoving it into her mouth whole like I'd done with the cheesecake.

She chewed thoughtfully before giving me a critical look. "Hmm. . ." she said as she peered into my violet eyes with her green ones.

"What?" I asked after she'd stared so long she was starting to freak me out.

"You know, I think. . ."

She was cut off when something collided against the window we were sitting by. We both looked over and watched as the remnants of a snowball slid down the glass. We looked at each other and then back at the window.

"Is that. . .?"

"I think it is," she answered as we both got up and went to the door.

As soon as we stepped outside, a snowball hit each of us squarely in the chest.

"Cheese and rice!" she sputtered, one of her sillier little substitutions for worse words. "Ash!"

Yep, Ash was one of the perpetrators. The other one was Cheryl. And they were both laughing as they scooped up the snow that was currently on the seats in front of the statue to make more snowballs. Laney wasn't about to give them the time they needed to fire on her again since she ran over to a table outside the cafe to scoop some up from there. Ash ran away from her and I managed to duck as Cheryl fired another one at me. I looked up just in time to see Laney throw her snowball. Ash quickly jumped out the way. Instead, the snowball hit somebody else. Somebody who really should have expected to somehow get drawn into this fight. Cam was coughing snow out of his mouth and wiping it off his face.

"Laney!" he exclaimed as he shook his head to expel the snow that was in his hair.

"I-I'm sorry, Cam. It was _his_ fault!" She waved an accusing finger at Ash, who had doubled over in laughter.

Cam didn't say a word. He wore his trademark blank expression as he assessed the situation, his eyes sweeping from Ash to Laney and then back to Ash again. And then he literally grabbed a chunk of snow out of the snowman between his shop and town hall, rolling it up into a ball. Ash saw him coming and started backing up.

"Cam, don't do this. Laney is the one who actually threw that snowball. This is totally her fault!"

"You ducked out of the way and let it hit him," Laney pointed out as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Hey, Cam, no!" Ash said, waving his hands in front of him.

Before Cam could throw the snowball, though, Cheryl threw one and hit him on the arm. She threw another and hit Laney on the leg. And then she launched another one at me which grazed my side. And each throw was lightning fast. When had she loaded up on all these snowballs?! Cheryl grabbed her big brother's arm and took off running, calling "You can't get us you slowpoke snow babies!"

We took off running after them. Georgia had the misfortune of opening up the door to Grady's shop just in time to receive a snowball in the side of her head, courtesy of Ash.

"Hey!" she yelled as Cheryl stuck her tongue out at her and the pair kept on running.

We chased them toward the beginning of the Bluebell area where they promptly disappeared.

"Where did they go?" Georgia asked, fired up from the snowy blow to the head she'd just received.

"I don't know. There are plenty of good places out here to hide," I said as I tried to think about where exactly they would go.

"We need to split up," Laney said as she hunched down to prepare herself some ammo. "We're going to take them down!" She dropped about five snowballs into the nearest arms she could find, and those were Georgia's. And then she started making up more. The next thing we knew, a snowball whizzed out of nowhere and hit Georgia on top of her head. Cheryl's excited giggles immediately followed.

"Oh it's on! Y'hear?!" Georgia called. "Laney, hurry up!"

"Watch out!" Cam said as he pulled me out the way just in time to avoid one myself. He kept hold of my arm and ran, leading me toward somewhere with better cover. He took me to the area just outside the town gates, to the left side where I sometimes saw Cheryl playing. We huddled together next to the two thin trees and tried to catch our breath. Ash was shouting something to somebody off in the distance.

"Come on," Cam said as he picked up some snow and started packing it together. "We have to work quickly."

He looked so excited as he crouched there making snowballs at lightning speed. He had such a boyish light in his eyes and his breath was puffing out of his mouth in white wispy little bursts since the anticipation had him breathing so fast. It was adorable.

"Alright," I said, gathering together some snow and forming snowballs just as quickly. "They're going down!"

"Ash is bad enough, but Cheryl is even worse," he told me as he gathered all his snowballs in his arms and stood up. "Ash has better aim, but Cheryl is smaller and faster. We have to keep an eye on her."

"Aye aye, captain," I said with a salute before I adjusted the snowballs I had sitting against my left arm.

I peeked out from behind the gate and a snowball hit me square in the jaw. I could see that Ash preferred to hit people in the head whereas Cheryl obviously preferred shorter places to aim at. Well I had a plan that would make sure he got plenty of snow on his own head. Ash and Cheryl had emerged from their hiding place and I saw Georgia launch a snowball at Cheryl. Ash pushed her out the way just in time.

"Let's go," Cam said, running out from behind the gate and launching one at Ash. Ash was quick enough to dodge it. He wasn't fast enough to dodge the one Laney threw at him, though, as Georgia decided to focus her energy on Cheryl and went chasing after her.

Cam started launching his snowballs at Ash, who took cover in the trees between my driveway and the shipping bin.

"Ash, you coward!" Cam called.

"Says the guy who hid out behind the town gates!" Ash retorted cheekily as he threw a snowball at Cam. It missed.

Ash peeked back out to see if he managed to hit his mark and Cam was fast enough to launch a snowball into his shoulder.

"Well you don't see me hiding anymore, do you?" Cam said as he easily stepped out the way of Ash's counterattack.

"Don't be afraid, Ash. Come on out. We won't hit you. . .too hard," I taunted cheerfully from where I stood about two feet away from Cam.

He apparently didn't like that since he actually did come out from behind the trees. Unfortunately for him, Laney was waiting and he received some snowy blows to his back.

Cheryl was still running from Georgia and I threw a snowball that hit her arm. "You meanie!" she yelled angrily as she threw one back at me that struck my leg.

Ash threw a snowball at me out of revenge for his sister and since he was still out in the open, Laney kept on hitting him in the back.

"Oh you're gonna get it," he said as he went chasing after her, Cam and I running after him throwing snowballs of our own.

Ash managed to disappear again so the three of us took that opportunity to load up on some more ammo. Cam glanced up at me as he completed his seventh snowball and grinned. I could believe what Laney had said earlier. When I first met Cam, he was definitely a more closed off person. Now, here we were in the midst of a snowball fight and he was smiling from ear to ear. I wondered what had brought about this change in him within just a couple of seasons. I looked over and saw Laney giving me a smile of her own. It was an amused one.

"Ash, help!" Cheryl cried as she was fresh out of snowballs and Georgia had her cornered over by the tunnel.

"I'm coming, Cheryl!" He ran over to where she was under the tree by the tunnel and stood in front of her to shield her. Apparently he had abandoned whatever snowballs he'd made in his haste to reach his little sister.

"Hey guys," I said, finally ready to enact the little plan I had hatched in my head. Luckily, he had just given me the opening I'd been waiting for. "Throw your snowballs up at the tree."

Cam shrugged and the girls raised an eyebrow each, but they all listened to me and we threw our snowballs up at the tree. That caused so much motion in the branches that all of the snow that had gathered there suddenly came pouring down on top of Ash and Cheryl.

"Game over," Laney said happily since it was pretty obvious that Ash and Cheryl had just been defeated.

"Oh yeah. Take that!" Georgia said as she did a happy little dance.

"Good job," Cam said as we hi-fived each other. "I'd say you thoroughly put them in their place."

"No fair, no fair!" Cheryl huffed as she tried to climb out of the snow, her little hands clenched angrily. "You're going to pay for that!"

Ash stood up and dusted himself off before reaching down and pulling her out. "Give it up, Cheryl. It's okay. They won this time."

"But Ash. . ." she started, looking down at the ground sadly.

"We'll get them next time, okay?" he said, ruffling her hair affectionately.

She sniffled, but nodded her head. "Okay." And then she looked at all of us with a determined fire in her eyes. "Next time, you're all gonna get it!"

"Well," Ash said as he grabbed Cheryl's hand. "I guess I'd better get this one home before she catches a cold." He was right. The rest of us had gotten hit with snow, but they'd been covered in it. "We had fun!"

"We had fun, too," Laney told him happily as she fell into step beside them on their way back into town.

"Hey, y'all, wait up!" Georgia said as she ran after them all.

Cam watched them go with a happy little grin. He looked over at me then and his smile grew. "That was brilliant, you know."

"What?"

"That plan of yours to dump all of that snow on Ash and Cheryl," he informed me.

"You liked that, huh?" I laughed and rubbed at my head. "It was mostly to get back at Ash for throwing a snowball at my head. Apparently my hair isn't good enough defense because now my head is cold."

The next thing I knew, Cam took his cap off his head and put it on mine. "Here. You can wear this for now."

My head was suddenly warm and my mouth dropped open. I didn't know why, but it felt like we were in high school and he was offering to let me wear his letterman jacket or his class ring or something like that. . . "A-Are you sure? I don't want you to get any colder and. . ."

"If you're that worried about it, how about we hurry up and get somewhere warm? I'll buy you something hot to drink over at the cafe. What do you say?"

Cam was offering to buy me something to drink. . .again! My heart and mind were both racing. It took me only half a second to come to a decision. "I'd love that."

He offered me his arm like a gentleman out of an old black and white movie. "My lady?"

'_Yes, I'll be your lady,_' I thought immediately. '_Whoa, where did that come from?! I-I didn't say that out loud, did I?_' I was sure my face was turning red as I stole a glance at him. He was looking at me expectantly, waiting on my answer. It looked like I was in the clear so I pulled myself together and replied. "Well thank you, kind sir." I took his arm and we made our way back to town. And I did my best to repress the thought I'd just had and to not dwell on what it meant.

In an attempt to push that little internal incident toward the back of my mind, I thought back on everything that had just transpired during the snowball fight. As I recalled something in particular, I squeezed his arm with the hand I had resting on it. "Thanks," I told him as I looked up at him.

"For what?" he asked, reaching up to tug on his hat and remembering that it wasn't on his head at the moment. It started snowing and the flakes drifted into his hair.

"For pulling me out the way of that snowball before. That was quite. . .chivalrous. Thanks."

He looked a little surprised and cleared his throat before responding. "Anytime," he assured me warmly as he reached over and squeezed my arm back. "Anytime."


	17. His Past and Her Heart

**Author's Note: **Alas, this particular chapter has arrived! It's time for things to fully shift in their intended direction and move forward straight through to the end. Thanks for your support!

* * *

I could easily say that Hiro was one of my favorite people. With that youthful face of his, he kind of felt like a little brother to me. He _was_ a year younger than me, after all. Anyway, I'd found out after my conversation with Kana before that Ayame was throwing Hiro a surprise birthday party. And I was _always_ up for a birthday party. So everybody in town waited at Yun's Tea House while Ayame lured him to the party.

"They're coming!" Rahi whispered as he ran back inside. He'd been our lookout and that was our cue to get ready.

"I'm afraid I do not understand," we could all hear Hiro saying. "What happened that warrants an immediate trip to the tea house?"

Just as he stepped inside, somebody flipped the lights on and we all yelled "Surprise!"

Hiro stood there looking shocked before color flooded his cheeks and he smiled sweetly. "A-A party? For my birthday?!"

"Happy birthday, kiddo. You deserve it," Ayame told him with a pat on his back.

Everybody came through and wished Hiro a happy birthday and we were all smiles and laughter and just happiness in general. When I was finally able to get one-on-one time with the birthday apprentice himself, I gave him a great big hug.

"Happy birthday, Hiro!"

"Thank you, Lillian," he said as he wrapped his arms around me. "You're here. This brings great happiness to me!"

"Of course I am! I told you I'd be around and here I am." I remembered his present and I pulled away as I went to retrieve it. "Hey, I brought you a gift. I think you'll like it!"

He looked down at it and placed a hand against his chest. "My word! Gratin! Is this a birthday present for me?!"

"Sure is. I hope you enjoy it!"

"Splendid!" he said as he took it out of my hands. "Thank you ever so much! I will savor the flavor in each and every bite."

He ran over to show Nori the dish I'd made him. I'd been noticing the two of them spending more and more time together whether I was there myself or Nori was telling me a story about something that had happened when I wasn't in town. I wondered. . .

A voice interrupted my musings. It was a voice that I definitely recognized. "Having fun?"

I looked over and there was Kana. "Yep, I am. How about you?"

"You know me," he said as he headed over toward the food table. "I love a good festival. I love a good party. And I love good food. Two out of three is good enough for me."

Things were back to normal between us, that awkward and confusing patch over. If there were any lingering feelings there that he was trying to work through, he wasn't showing that to me. So I assumed that the crush he'd had on me was gone. Or at least that he was getting over it. And it must not have been anything deeper than a crush or else I figured it would've been harder for him to deal with. I really meant it, though. There was a girl out there who would appreciate having him. I even had a good idea about who that girl could be, but first that tunnel would have to be completed unless Kana wanted to trek over the mountain on a regular basis. Then again, I trekked over the mountain on a regular basis, so. . .

I'd had a little chat with Reina and Mako before Nori came and found me. "How is Bluebell these days?" she asked me as Mako went over to talk to Ayame and Reina went to get something to drink. It had only been a few days since the last time we talked, but she liked frequent updates.

"It's good. We had a big snowball fight just yesterday! My friend Ash and his little sister Cheryl started it. Now that I think about it, Cheryl is about the same age as Rahi and Ying. It'd be nice if we could get the tunnel opened and then all three of them could play together."

Nori nodded attentively. "So, was he there?"

"Was who there?" I asked, not following her random question.

"You know. Your _friend _Cam," she said with an unassuming smile, the picture of innocence.

"Yes, Nori, he was there. Why?" I said. She'd been bringing Cam up an awful lot ever since that day at my farm.

"Nothing, nothing. So what happened during the snowball fight?"

"We all split into teams against Ash and Cheryl. Laney and Georgia were together and Cam and I were a team and why are you giving me that look?"

After my strange conversation with Nori, I had a run in with Dirk and had a conversation that was definitely less bizarre. And I left the party feeling happy and looking forward to whatever else winter had to offer me.

The party had been pretty late in the day so it was dark by the time I got home. By then, I was so tired from all the fun I'd been having that I went straight to bed. It didn't take me long at all to fall asleep and I slept like a rock until my alarm woke me up at six in the morning.

Having new livestock meant that I had to start all over again. Not only were they little babies, but I had to earn their trust and gain their affection. I didn't mind it, though. I was enjoying the way this new arrangement was going for me. I definitely felt that I'd made the right decision when it came to raising animals more and growing crops less. Cam and Ash sure had both told me more than once that I should raise more animals and they'd been right. Now if only I could get my cat to like me more. Then I'd really be on top of things. . .

I had gotten everything done much earlier than expected and I was just on my way off the farm when I happened to run into Eileen. She must have just been on her way to the mountain. I was actually glad I ran into her because I still had yet to talk to her about making an expansion to the farm. Specifically, I was thinking about having her do something to the house.

"Eileen, hi," I said, waving to get her attention as she passed by the church.

Speaking of the church, we now had a priest in Bluebell by the name of Nathan. Rutger had brought him by my house to introduce him and I'd been to the church to visit him since then.

"Good morning, Lillian," she told me as she headed my way. "I still feel so sleepy, like I need to climb back in bed."

"I feel pretty tired myself," I admitted as I stifled a yawn. Maybe I should have had one more cup of coffee before I left the farm.

"Oh? Did you have a busy day yesterday?"

"I went to a party over in Konohana. Hey, I've been meaning to talk to you," I told her as I fished her request out of my bag. "I have a question about this request."

Now I had Eileen's full attention, sleepy or not. "The one for the tunnel? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I was just wondering if you would do something else for me instead. I actually wanted to make some modifications to the house."

Eileen took the paper from me and folded it up before putting it in her pocket. "Sure! I can have a new request with a list of materials ready for you by tomorrow. Although. . ."

"Yeah?" I prompted when she got silent and thoughtful on me.

"I'll be happy to do it for you. I'm afraid we'll need the permission of the person who owns the house first, though."

"Wait, what?" I asked, not sure whether or not I'd heard what she just said right.

"The person who owns the house has to give me permission first. Well, he owns the entire farm so if you want anything else done there, we'll need his permission for that as well."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." I knew that _I_ didn't own the farm, but I'd never stopped to wonder who actually did own it. I'd always just assumed that it was abandoned land on the outskirts of town that nobody had any claim to. "Who owns it?"

"I really thought you knew. Especially considering how close you two are. . ." Eileen said slowly as she muddled it over in her head. "Well, the house and the farm actually belong to Cam."

"Cam?" I asked kind of dumbly.

"Yes."

"Cam." I repeated.

"The one and only," she nodded. "I'm pretty sure he will agree to it, so really this is just a formality. Normally I would want written proof of consent, but your word is good enough for me. Get his permission and then just come and let me know. We can get the ball rolling from there," Eileen told me before she continued on her way toward the mountain.

I shuffled over to the steps that led up to the church and sat down, trying to sort through my thoughts. Cam owned the house? Wait, no. He owned the entire farm?! Since when? He had never mentioned that to me. Well, he was Cam so I really shouldn't be surprised that there was something he hadn't told me. Still, though, you'd think that since I lived there it would have come up at some point. Right? You'd think that it would be something that would come up in a conversation.

I had only one destination in mind when I finally made my way through town. And that was Cam, wherever he was at the moment. I didn't feel like it was a big deal or anything, but I just wanted to know what was up.

When I made it to the town square, I spotted Cam over behind the table at his shop. It certainly wasn't opening time yet, but it looked like he was getting things ready to open up in an organized way that was complemented by a leisurely pace. I knew from personal experience, though, that he could have it all done by now if he really needed to. He was chatting with Ash, who was sitting on the edge of his table and making hand gestures to illustrate whatever story he was telling. Ash must have been really into whatever it was they were talking about.

Rubbing my gloved hands together to generate a little more heat there, I second guessed myself and thought that maybe I shouldn't go up there and interrupt them. Ash spotted me, though, and waved me over. I hesitated and he waved at me again. I shrugged and walked over to where they were.

"Good morning, Lillian," Ash said when I was close enough to hear him.

"Hey, Ash. Morning," I responded with a smile. Cam had yet to start sitting any flowers on the table. I was pretty sure he was waiting for Ash to move before he did that. I just couldn't picture him risking it even a second before then. Otherwise, he'd be worried the entire time that Ash would accidentally crush one of them. "Hi, Cam."

"Lillian," he replied with an easygoing smile and a nod of his head. And then he frowned as he considered me. "You look like something's on your mind."

I paused as I thought about what was on my mind. Well, I figured it was probably best just to come right on out and ask him. I finished walking over there and stopped in front of the table. "Cam, when were you going to tell me that you own my farm? Well, umm. . ._your_ farm. The place where I live?"

Ash looked from Cam to me and back again. Him and Cam exchanged some strange little look and then Ash hopped off the table. "I think I'm going to let the two of you talk. I'll see you both later," he said with a parting wave as he headed back to work. It was suddenly obvious to me that Eileen wasn't the only person who knew that Cam owned the farm. Then again, Ash at the very least was to be expected. It occurred to me, though, that I was probably the only person in all of Bluebell to not know.

Cam let out a sigh as Ash hurried down the stairs and quickly made his way through the town square. "How much do you know?"

With a raised eyebrow I told him "Just that the house and the farm it's on are yours. I wanted to do some upgrades to the house and Eileen spilled the beans because I need your permission to make any changes first. It's not that it bothers me or anything. I just wonder why you never said anything about it. Care to explain?"

"Yeah, well, honestly I've never considered them as being mine. I don't think of the farm that way," Cam said as he organized some bottles of perfume. He stopped what he was doing and finally looked at me. He looked a little upset and I saw him tugging at his hat. Then he stuck his hands in his pockets. And then he started tugging at his hat again.

"Are you okay?" I asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. That stopped his fidgeting pretty quickly.

He took a deep breath and said "Technically, the house and farm belong to me. But that's only because they passed on to me after my mom split."

Whoa. Wait, what? Cam had told me he'd lost his mom when he was fifteen. He'd never told me the circumstances under which that loss had occurred. I'd assumed that she'd died like my mom had. But she hadn't. . .

"Your mom left?" I queried immediately. I had a bad feeling in my stomach.

"I never knew my dad. For as long as I can remember, it was just me and mom. She ran the farm back in those days. I wasn't like Ash with what he does for his mom. I just. . .I love animals, but farming was never my thing. So I grew flowers while she took care of the animals. Well, except for the flowers in the boxes of the house. Those were hers." He cleared his throat before he continued on. "One day, a man came to town. He was a complete stranger who was passing through and he stayed at the town hall. When my mom met him, something in her just changed. It was suddenly like I just wasn't there anymore, like I didn't register in her mind or something. When he said jump, she said how high. It was that kind of thing with them. And when he said ditch your kid and come with me, she didn't look back. She forfeited everything and just left. I haven't heard from her since."

Hearing the pain in his voice and the awful story that accompanied it had me near tears. He was still hurting over what happened and I was hurting for him. And now I understood. Sure, maybe he'd always been one of those people who didn't usually show their emotions, like Rutger had said. But the whole being cold and suspicious of new people thing he'd told me about way back on Flower Day? I was guessing that started when whoever this guy was swooped in and took his mom.

"And you were _fifteen_? She left you on your own when you were fifteen?"

"Yeah. . .That's when Howard took me in. I left the farm and moved into the cafe. I haven't lived there since the day my mom left. So you see, I may technically own it, but it's not my home. You can make any changes you want to it. Seeing you there. . .You've breathed new life into the place. It's _your_ home now, Lillian."

I couldn't take it anymore. Seeing the sad little smile he gave me when he concluded his story is what broke me. I hurried behind the table and threw my arms around Cam, crying into the front of his jacket.

"Cam, I-I-I'm so sorry," I said, holding on tight.

He rubbed my back soothingly and rested his chin on top of my head. "Hey, it's okay. It was a long time ago."

"It's not okay," I sniffled. Sure, our situations were different. My mom was dead and his mom completely abandoned him. Still, though, our wounds were similar enough for me to understand what he felt in his heart. Those flowers in the boxes had been hers. And he still looked after them. No, he wasn't okay with this. "We may move on and go about our lives. Years may pass and we grow up without them, but it's never okay."

He let out a sigh then and held on to me as tightly as I was holding onto him. "You're right," he amended. "It's really not."

After I calmed down, I let go of him and took a couple of steps back. I had never hugged Cam before. I'd hugged other guys who lived in the two towns, but never Cam. Being so close to him that I could hear his heart beating under my ear. . .Feeling his arms wrapped around me so tightly with his warmth surrounding me. . .It felt. . .

"Ugh, I'm sorry about your jacket," I apologized when I saw the big wet spot marring the front of it.

"Lillian, don't worry about it. My jacket will dry."

I drew in a calming breath and took another step back. "I probably look like a real mess right now with all my crying. I-I should go home."

"Hey, wait," he said as I started backing up. ". . .Sometimes I like to choose flowers whose meaning fits the day. Here, let me tell you what one of these flowers means."

"O-Okay," I said, backing up more so I could be completely out of his way.

I stood there and watched as Cam looked through his flowers. He fixed each and every one in his gaze as he considered what it was he was looking for. His eyes lit up when he apparently found exactly what he wanted. Cam grabbed a pretty red flower and strolled over to me with a tender smile gracing his lips.

"Today's is amaryllis," he informed me as he held the flower out. I accepted it and gazed down at the amaryllis. I'd never seen anything like it before. When I looked back up, Cam reached out and touched my cheek. He used his thumb to wipe away the remnants of my tears. "It means 'radiant beauty.' Someone who has the ability to empathize and feel another person's pain is not only beautiful on the outside, but also on the inside. They radiate it from within. Like you."

My heart was doing that boom-clap thing yet again at a hundred miles an hour and my head was spinning a little. Something suddenly made absolute perfect sense to me. It was suddenly crystal clear. All of those boom-clap moments. . .Why I couldn't return Kana's feelings. The way Nori had been hinting things to me like she knew something I didn't. . .Oh, and lets not forget the direction my thoughts had taken after the snowball fight. I had been doing my best to ignore it for a while now, but it was something that had been building and building at a pretty steady rate over the seasons. And at that very moment, it became apparent to me that I couldn't repress my feelings any longer. As I looked from the beautiful flower in my hand to the eyes of the man who had given it to me, I realized that I had kinda, sorta, maybe. . .fallen in love with him.


	18. Continuously Amazed

**Author's Note: **At this point, there are only five chapters left and a couple more weeks of me posting them. On another note, wow. Last chapter was popular. Thanks for reading! That makes me so happy. ^_^ Here we go!

* * *

So. . .I was in love with Cam? I was in love with Cam. I had never actually been in love before. It's not like I'd never had feelings for a guy before, but I'd never felt strongly enough about somebody to call it love. Other women threw the word around rather freely when they got swept up in the emotions of a relationship and whatnot. That just wasn't me, though. I always thought I would have to be pretty darn certain before I considered myself to be in love. And now I was. I certainly couldn't pinpoint a specific moment when my feelings of friendship shifted into something more. I did know that from the moment I'd first seen him, I hadn't been able to get him out of my head. Even when he was cold toward me and I was mad at him for it, I was always perplexed because I would still find myself thinking about him.

Could I really call this love? I mean, I had never even kissed him before. Could I say I loved somebody when we'd never kissed? Just the thought of kissing Cam was enough to make my face redder than the tomatoes I had grown in summer. Then again, perhaps I could be even more sure it was love since I didn't have the feelings of such a physical interaction and hormones and such clouding my judgment. Now that I thought about it, Kana had kissed me and I _knew _I didn't love him no matter how that kiss had made me feel. A kiss or lack thereof, I decided, had no impact on what I was feeling. I _was_ sure about my feelings. I was definitely certain.

Despite my feelings for him, I resolved to go on acting totally and completely normal around him. And that wasn't easy. It's like how you blink automatically and as soon as you think about how you're blinking, you're suddenly hyper-aware of blinking. That's what it was like for me. Now that I'd admitted to myself that I loved him, I was hyper-aware of that fact. If I was going into town and I knew I was going to see Cam, I stopped to consider how I looked before I did so. I would check my hair. I would stare in the mirror and re-think my outfit. I would check my breath to make sure I'd successfully brushed the remnants of my breakfast away. . .

Since Cam had in fact given me permission to renovate the house, I had gone to Eileen the next day to let her know. She'd had the request ready and waiting. The thing is, it took me some time to collect all the materials she had asked of me. _And_ I had to really chip into my savings. I was going to be feeling that money loss for a while. But it had been worth it when she was done with the house. Well, specifically I had asked her to expand and remodel my bedroom.

"Good afternoon," I greeted Cam as I strolled toward the cafe. I had a request to fulfill for Howard. Apparently there was a leak he needed to patch up and I had materials left over from when I was gathering stuff for Eileen's request. I was on a tight schedule so I hadn't planned on stopping to chat. Still, though, since I'd known I would be seeing him I had tried on three different scarves before I decided on the one I was wearing.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry today?" he asked me when I was about five feet from the door. Well, so much for just breezing through. I felt myself being drawn over to him like a moth to a flame. I tried to fight it.

"I'm going to fulfill a request for Howard and then I'm heading to Konohana. It's the tea house owner's birthday today so I want be one of her many well-wishers."

I had just made it to the door of the cafe and my hand was hovering over the doorknob when he said "That's a nice outfit. I really like it."

"T-Thanks," I said, trying hard to stave off the color attempting to make its way into my cheeks. He'd complimented me on my clothes before in the past. The difference then was they were just something I threw on whereas this time I had put a great deal of thought into it with him specifically in mind. Therefore, it felt quite different to hear it.

I didn't even get my hand all the way to the doorknob before he said "I'm sorry I keep bothering you and all, but. . ."

He looked flustered. He looked quite flustered. That caught my attention. I stepped away from the door and approached his shop. "What's up?" I asked as I cocked my head to the side and studied him.

"I, uh," he said, grabbing something from behind him and holding it out toward me. "I made this for you."

It was a bottle of perfume. It was a lovely shade of blue, my favorite color. And I was willing to bet it smelled lovely, just like the other perfumes he made. "Oh! Thank you, Cam!" I said, accepting his gift more than happily.

"I made it with you in mind," he admitted then, much to my surprise. "I wanted to come up with a scent that I felt perfectly suited you. You know. . .a scent that's all your own."

_I_ was his inspiration for this perfume? It was made specifically for _me_? I looked from the perfume to him and back again with wonder before I opened the top of the bottle and gave it a sniff. It was beautiful, exactly the kind of perfume I would wear. It was a floral scent, yet there was something fruity about it as well. And there was just a hint of a vanilla scent that brought to mind something warm.

"Wow, Cam. I-I really love it. Thank you," I spoke softly, marveling at my new signature scent. "I'm going to wear this every day." I was suddenly hit with some inspiration of my own that made me feel very, _very_ nervous. I nearly chickened out, actually. I glanced back down at the perfume, though, and that steeled my resolve. "Hey, if you're free Tuesday night then why don't you come over to the farm? We can hang out and I'll even make dinner for you."

The invitation kind of hung in the air between us for a few moments. My cheeks were growing warmer by the second and Cam was tugging at his hat. His cheeks were a little red as he smiled warmly at me. "That sounds wonderful. I'm in."

There. I'd done it. I'd asked him over for dinner. And he said yes. And I felt the sudden need to get away from him before I did something embarrassing that would make him change his mind. "Great! So yeah, I'm gonna go now. Howard is waiting and I have to get to Konohana so. . .later."

"I'll see you soon," he told me. For some reason, those words didn't just sound like something somebody said at the end of a conversation when someone was departing. They sounded more like a promise.

With a little wave, I quickly walked to the cafe and hurried through the door. I shut it behind me and leaned back against it, putting my free hand against my chest.

"Are you alright, Lillian?" Laney asked me with a puzzled look as she wiped off a table.

"Yep. I'm good. I'm _definitely_ good. Now, I heard somebody has a leak they need to patch up."

When the request was all taken care of, Howard was beyond happy and I had been appropriately rewarded. I headed back out since I really did need to get over to Konohana. I gave Cam a shy smile as I passed through and hurried on my way. And then I remembered that I had a dragonfly in my rucksack that I had nearly forgotten to give to Diego. After I quickly dropped that gift off, I hurried back toward to the farm so I could get back on track. Taking care of business in Bluebell had taken longer than I'd intended. I had planned on riding Levi to Konohana since that would get me over the mountain more quickly, but she refused to leave the barn for some reason. She usually at least wandered outside throughout the day, but today she wouldn't even do that.

"What is it, girl?" I asked as I stroked her mane. She leaned into my hand and made a distraught little sound. "Are you not feeling well?" I let out a sigh and gave her some animal medicine just in case. If she was still acting strangely the next day then I would have to go into town and get some reinforcements. And by that I meant Georgia. She would probably know what was wrong since she was Bluebell's horse expert.

Going on foot would take longer, which meant that I should definitely get going. I checked to make sure that Yun's gift was actually in my rucksack before I stepped outside the barn and got on my way. It had somehow managed to get colder between the time I left the cafe and the time I reached the entrance to Bluebell. I shivered and checked to make sure that my coat was securely around me. I was suddenly thankful that the scarf I was wearing was a thick one because I certainly needed it.

The wind was picking up as I walked higher and higher. And then out of nowhere it was snowing. It had been cloudy all day, but it hadn't been snowing. That wasn't what was weird. What was weird was how fast it was coming down and how large the flakes were. Add the wind to that and the harsh cold and I was suddenly feeling quite unsafe. I couldn't see two feet ahead of me and then I had the misfortune of slipping on a patch of ice.

"Owww!" I exclaimed as I came down hard, falling against the frigid ground. It had knocked the wind right out of me and I laid there for a moment trying to collect my bearings. I pulled my right knee up under me and went to stand up, but I fell back down with a yelp. "This is not good," I mumbled when I realized that I must have twisted my ankle in my fall.

I sat up and carefully pulled my foot toward me. My ankle felt tender as I poked at it and I grimaced at the little jolts of pain my finger ignited. Oh this was just great. I was in the middle of what I was guessing was a freak blizzard and now I couldn't walk. How did my day go from being so great to so not great so fast? I was starting to feel scared as the freezing wind blew the snow in my face and the visibility continued to decrease. I sat there shivering and shook my head. I had to get up. I definitely couldn't stay out there on the cold ground in such awful weather.

'_Maybe if I try getting up with my other foot I can hop back down the mountain_,' I thought as I tried to figure a way out of this situation. Okay, so the hopping didn't sound very good but at the very least I could try to stand.

That was when I heard it. I could barely hear something over the howling wind. I stopped what I was doing and listened, trying to figure out what it was. It almost sounded like. . .like. . .

"Lillian!" I heard closer now. "Lillian, are you out here?!" That voice. It was frantic and it sounded like Cam's. "Lillian!" Oh my goddess, it was Cam!

"Cam!" I yelled over the wind. "Cam, I'm over here! Follow the sound of my voice! I'm over here!"

"Where?" I could hear him getting closer now.

"I'm here!"

All of a sudden, there he was. He very nearly walked right by me since it was hard to see, but he spotted me. I felt an instant rush of relief as he knelt down in front of me. I threw my arms around him. "Lillian!" He let out a sigh of relief as he wrapped his arms around me. "Thank the Harvest Goddess! I didn't know if I'd find you. What are you doing on the ground?"

"I-I slipped on some ice and twisted my ankle. I tried to stand up and that didn't work out too well, as you can see."

"Hold on tight, okay? I'm going to pick you up," he said as he turned me a little. He kept one arm around my back and slipped his other under my knees. I held onto his neck as he stood up with me in his arms. I was securely locked between his arms and his chest.

"Thank you so much, Cam. You really have no idea how scared I was starting to feel," I told him as snow started sticking to my eyelashes. I let go of his neck and swiped at my eyes, blinking and then swiping some more.

"I think I do," he replied as he carefully walked down the mountain, stopping every ten seconds or so to make sure we were on the proper path. "I was looking and looking and I couldn't find you. I started to wonder if I would."

That was when a question popped in my head. "About that," I said as I looked up at his face. "Why were you out looking for me in the first place?"

"Laney went upstairs to take a break from work. She thought she'd listen to the radio for a while. You know, the one Howard got her for her birthday? Anyway, they broke in with a weather report that said a blizzard was about to hit. I hurried over to the farm hoping you were still there. You didn't answer the door so I assumed you didn't know about the blizzard and you were on your way to Konohana. When your horse poked her head out of the barn, I realized you must have been on foot. That's when I ran up the mountain trying to find you."

"You ran all the way up the mountain to find me in the middle of a blizzard?" I asked, shocked that he went to such lengths for me. If he hadn't come when he did, who knows what would've happened to me. He probably just saved my life.

"Yes," he said as he focused on where we were going and looked straight ahead. "I did."

I laid my head against his chest and breathed in the scent of flowers that always seemed to cling to him, my heart racing. "Thank you."

We were both extremely relieved when we finally made it back within the Bluebell area. Cam turned left and headed to the farm. The weather was only growing worse and I was quite frankly surprised we'd successfully made it off the mountain since it was so hard to see. Something told me that Cam didn't need to see to make it to the house. Growing up on this farm, he could probably walk around it blindfolded and still not bump into anything.

Cam opened up the door and kicked it shut behind him, walking swiftly over to the couch and carefully depositing me on it. He then strolled over to the linen closet and pulled out blankets before he draped them over me one by one. I was chilled to the bone and shivering. It wasn't hypothermia, though. My body temperature hadn't dropped _that _low. Rufus and Night hurried over and climbed up on the couch. There was one dog on either side of me and they whined softly. Rufus nuzzled his head against my cheek and Night laid his head down in my lap. Even Penelo was concerned. She hopped up onto the coffee table and stared at me as she mewled softly.

"You just wait here, okay?" Cam asked as he leaned down to look me in the eyes. Rufus leaned over and licked him on the cheek. Cam was surprised, but he reached over to rub Rufus behind his ears.

I gave him a quick nod and he went to the bathroom. I could hear the sound of water running through the pipes and guessed he was drawing me a bath. While it was running, he came back out and checked on me.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I told him, still shivering but already warming back up thanks to the blankets and the dogs.

He rubbed my arms for me, trying to get some more heat going. He must have been just as cold as I was and here he was worrying about me. "Are you up for taking a bath? It'll warm you up."

"That sounds awesome," I responded, my eyes drifting closed as my arms started to thaw under the heat of his hands.

"Sit tight and I'll grab you some more clothes. I-It's okay if I go in your room to get them, right?"

I nodded my consent and he strolled over to my door before opening it up and slipping inside. I wondered for a second how he knew which one was mine, considering there were two bedrooms, but then I remembered whose house this technically was. When he emerged from my room, he was holding my neatly folded clothes in one arm and tugging at his hat with his free hand. I was willing to bet that he'd have his other hand in his pocket if my clothes weren't a factor. His cheeks were noticeably pink and I had absolutely no idea why that was. What had his feathers so ruffled? Cam sat my clothes down in my lap and I surveyed them, looking to see what he'd picked out. There was a long sleeved white shirt, a fuzzy pair of lavender pajama pants, and. . .

'_Oh_,' I thought as I connected the dots in my head. With me unable to hop up and get my clothes myself, Cam had no choice but to rifle through my underwear drawer for me. He turned crimson as he watched realization dawn on me.

"I-I'm going to c-check on your bath," he stuttered as he headed back to the bathroom. I had a feeling my face was only growing in color. Cam came back quickly and cleared his throat. "It's ready. Do you want me to carry you in there?"

I nodded. I realized that while my ankle really was injured, there was a large part of me that enjoyed being in his arms and having him carry me around. My animals cleared out of the way as he came over to me and scooped me up into his arms, making sure not to disturb the clothes that were still sitting in my lap. When we made it to the bathroom door I looked up at him kind of shyly and said "I think I can take it from here."

He looked confused for a second before his cheeks grew even darker. "Y-Yeah. Sure you can. I'll, uh, just sit you on your feet now." I picked up my clothes so they wouldn't fall on the floor and he gently lowered me down. I hit the floor with my good foot and held onto the door frame. I hobbled further into the room and gave him a small smile before I shut the door and locked it. For a few seconds, I pressed my forehead against the door and took a deep breath. What was it about today? Whether he was giving me a gift or saving my life, Cam was leaving me continuously amazed. . .


	19. Right Where He Belongs

I soaked in the tub for a while and thought about everything that had happened that day. It had been a roller coaster, let me tell you. I'd been up, down, and up again both physically and emotionally. I didn't want to linger in the tub too long, though, considering Cam was out there waiting for me. Therefore, I decided it was time to get out. Getting out wasn't easy since my ankle was so sore, but I managed. I mean, it's not like I was about to call Cam to come in and help me, that was for sure. I emerged from the bathroom fully clothed and completely warmed up. Cam was sitting on my couch with the blankets on him so he could get warm. When he heard me at the door he jumped up and hurried over.

"Do you need me to carry you again?" he asked, concern etched onto his handsome features. As lovely as the idea of him carrying me again sounded, I didn't want to take advantage of him again.

Reluctantly, I shook my head. Oh how badly I wanted to say yes. "No. I do need your help, though. Would you mind letting me hold onto you as I try and walk over there?"

He draped his arm across my shoulders and I snaked my arm around his back. Even if he wasn't carrying me, I had to admit this was a nice alternative. He helped me limp over to the couch and I lowered myself down as carefully as possible. Cam took a couple of the pillows I had on the couch and propped my injured ankle up on them.

"You need to keep this elevated," he informed me. "I'm going to get you some ice. And something for the pain. I'll be back in a minute."

It was impressive how he moved throughout the house and was able to figure out where everything was. Then again, I shouldn't be so surprised. Other than the work Eileen had done to the house, it was essentially unchanged from how he had left it. Cam had left this place behind years ago. As I peeked over the top of the couch to watch him search through the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, though, I couldn't help but feel like he was exactly where he was supposed to be. I felt like he belonged here.

Cam returned and gently placed the ice pack on my ankle. He then held out a glass of water to me and a couple of ibuprofen. I shot him a grateful look as I took the medicine and washed it down with half of the water. I reached over and sat the glass on the coffee table.

"Thank you, Cam. For _everything_. I don't know what I would have done without you."

"It was nothing," he told me as he gathered up the blankets and folded them before draping them over the back of the couch for the time being.

"It wasn't nothing," I rebutted rather vehemently. "You probably saved my life. I really mean it. Thank you."

He averted his eyes and rubbed the back of his head. I wondered if his cheeks would ever be their normal color again. "You're welcome," he finally relented. I knew that Cam wasn't the kind of guy who liked having a fuss made over him, but he deserved this praise and I was going to make sure he got it. He deserved credit where credit was due.

I heard a meow and looked down in time to see Penelo rubbing against Cam's legs. He reached down and picked her up. She purred happily as he rubbed her and she leaned into his touch. "I cannot believe this," I said with a shake of my head. I was in absolute disbelief. "I've been working so hard to get her to warm up to me and here she's taken an instant liking to you! It figures. You're the cat whisperer."

He laughed softly as he sat Penelo back down on her feet. The snowy white cat ran off somewhere and Cam sat down on the couch next to where my ankle was. "You mentioned a while back that her name's Penelo, right? That's a pretty name."

"You think? I named her after my grandma. Her name was Penelope. She was a farmer, too, actually."

"Really? I don't think you've ever told me that before," he said as he turned toward me and lifted an eyebrow.

"I haven't? Well I told you how I used to spend my summers on the old family farm, right?" When Cam nodded, I continued. "Well it was my grandma Penny's farm over in a place called Flower Bud Village. She actually inherited the farm from her mother, Raye. My great-grandma just up and moved to that village one day and started a new life there, kind of like me. That's where she met her husband, Alex. The rest is history."

"What ever happened to the farm?" Cam asked. He seemed to be very taken in by my story.

"It's still up and running. Despite her age, my grandma Penny is still in good health. Besides her, brother Julian is a doctor so he'd let her know if it was time for her to throw in the towel and retire. Other people normally would have retired by now, but not my grandma. She's full of life so I think she has a few good years left in her. Even when she is done looking after the farm herself, I have plenty of cousins who are capable of taking over for her. I'm sure that farm will continue to prosper for a long time yet."

Cam looked thoughtful as he listened to the end of my story. When he opened up his mouth, I didn't expect what came out of it. "My dad. . .Uh, my father was into flowers, too. He liked to travel all over the place and learn more about them. He wanted to travel all around the world and learn about every flower there was. He was traveling when he came to Bluebell and met my mom. They fell in love and settled down. After I was born, though, he started to grow restless. And then one day he just. . .breezed out of my mom's life as easily as he had come into it. My mom always used to say that it was us against the world. She used to say that he may have left us, but we'd always have each other. She told me we wouldn't abandon each other the way he abandoned us. She _promised_. Then she broke that promise. She did the one thing she said she'd never do."

He paused in his story and I sat up, leaning forward so I could reach out and rub his back. "You okay?" I asked as he took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he assured me before he picked up where he left off in what he was saying. "I always told myself that I wouldn't be like either of them. I wouldn't make promises I wouldn't keep. I wouldn't lie. I wouldn't be capricious. I know I go out of town every Monday, but that's just to study more about flowers and to buy necessary supplies for my shop. I'm always going to come home, though. Someday, when I get married and have a kid, they're never going to have to wonder if I'm going to walk out the door one morning and never come back. I want to be everything that my parents never were. I want to be _more_ than them. Do you get that?"

Him asking me that question caught me off guard, but I nodded my head. He didn't want to make the same mistakes they did. He wanted to be stable and dependable and grounded. He wanted to give to other people all the things he never had. And he wasn't talking about money or material possessions, either. He was talking about something that was of far greater value. "I do get that," I confirmed. I stopped rubbing his back and cradled his face in my hands. "You're already more than they were, Cam. You're so much more."

We sat there that way staring at each other for a little while with my hands holding his face and our gazes locked. I just kept thinking about how happy I was that he felt comfortable enough to tell me more about his parents. And I wondered what other things he had to share in the future. I'd always wanted to get inside his head and the more time that passed, the more he let me in. I liked that.

I finally let my hands drop and leaned back against the armrest of the couch. Cam let out a sigh and looked over toward the window. I craned my head so I could look as well. White. There was nothing but white. It was falling fast and heavy. "I'm not looking forward to walking home in that," he mused as he kept his eyes on the window.

"You are not going back out in that," I told him with a serious look.

"Howard and Laney," he began.

"Would be devastated if something happened to you out in that weather," I interrupted. "You could freeze into a. . .a Cam-sicle out there and then we wouldn't even be able to hold a proper funeral until spring. Because it would take you forever to thaw out."

"Dramatic much, Lillian?" He gave me an amused smile and I smiled back.

"No. I'm just letting you know the possible consequences of going out there. If you want to risk it, though, that's up to you. You're a grown man. You can do what you want." I crossed my arms over my chest in a silent challenge. Fortunately, he did not rise to the occasion.

"You're right," Cam admitted as he stood up. "It's better if I not go out there and turn into a Cam-sicle."

"What are you doing, then?" I asked as he headed toward the door. Seriously, if he opened it up I was going to have to hoist myself up from the couch and hobble after him.

"Taking off my jacket and hanging it up. If I'm staying then I'll probably be more comfortable that way. Besides, I'm plenty warm now."

"Oh, well, that makes sense," I amended as he hung it up on the coat rack. I had it sitting on the other side of the door, opposite Aram's own personal perch. Speaking of Aram, he was flying around the room minding his own business. I watched him land on the floor before I finally had to turn back around. My neck was starting to hurt from trying to see so far behind me.

"So," Cam said, rubbing his hands together as he stood over me. "What do you want for dinner?"

"I'm supposed to be cooking for _you_, remember," I said as I looked up at him.

"That's next Tuesday," he reminded me. "And your ankle is hurt so I'd rather you stay put. Who's that friend of yours again? The doctor's apprentice?"

"Hiro."

"Wouldn't Hiro tell you to stay put, too?"

He got me there. Yep, he definitely got me there. "Yes, he would."

"So what would you like for dinner?" he tried again.

Since I was the queen of being indecisive, I couldn't think of what would sound the most appetizing to me. Instead I said "Anything you make is fine with me, really."

Cam made spaghetti for us. I smiled since I could see he remembered me saying I loved just about anything and everything with tomato sauce in it. He helped me to the table and we had a nice chat and a lovely dinner. When it was finally late enough that I was getting tired, Cam had whipped up some kind of a poultice from stuff I had in my storage box. He applied it to my ankle and promised that it would feel better in the morning. And seeing as I was the one who was injured and he was the one who was tending to me, I certainly wasn't about to argue with his logic. Especially not after he told me it was something his mom always made whenever she managed to injure herself while she was hard at work.

I sank into my brand new bed Eileen had put in for me. I was beyond exhausted from all of the events that had transpired throughout the day and my bed was oh so comfortable that I felt myself drifting off to sleep pretty quickly. Cam had gone to what was his old bedroom and as I finally closed my eyes, I wondered how he felt sleeping under the same roof and in the same bed that he'd left behind so long ago.

When I woke up in the morning, I saw the sunlight streaming in past the curtains. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, feeling sluggish and confused. I felt like I was forgetting something. I sat there for a few minutes and thought really hard about it, but nothing was coming to me. It wasn't until I threw my legs over the side of the bed and realized that my ankle wasn't hurting that I remembered. I remembered everything that had happened the previous day. I looked down at my ankle and swung my foot back and forth. Nothing. I sat my foot down on the floor and put some of my weight on it. There still wasn't any pain. I stood up and everything felt just fine. I had myself a good stretch and then went to get dressed. Goodness, whatever the exact ingredients of that poultice were. . .Cam should market it. Maybe he could work out a deal with Diego and have him sell it in his store.

When I emerged from my room, I didn't see Cam. I cracked open the door of his room just a tiny bit and saw his figure huddled up under the covers. He was still sound asleep. I shut the door again and brushed my teeth before tending to my pets. When they were taken care of, I packed my rucksack and went outside to take a look at the world. There was a lot of snow, but at least I hadn't been snowed in. My animals were beyond thrilled to see me. Surely they must have been spooked by the bad weather. Levi kind of snorted at me and whipped her tail back and forth. I got the impression that she was angry at me and was scolding me. It made sense now why she didn't want to go out yesterday. She must have known that the weather was about to get bad and she was trying to warn me. Apparently I'd wasted that animal medicine on her since she was obviously just fine. I then rescued my crops from the snow and was relieved to see they would be alright.

I left my livestock's products in my bag and planned to ship them off later. For now, I wanted to go back inside and see if Cam was up yet. He wasn't. By the time I was done making coffee for me and tea for him, though, he emerged from his room looking adorably disheveled and properly confused. When his eyes landed on me, it all seemed to be coming back to him. "Good morning," he said as he went to tug at his hat and realized he didn't have it. I remembered he'd left it on the coffee table.

"Good morning. I made you some tea," I said as I held it out to him. It was rose tea, just the same as when we'd had tea after the infamous mud battle.

"That's great. Thanks," he said as he accepted the cup and took a sip. I sipped at my hot coffee and headed back to the kitchen. Cam followed along behind me.

"I figured I'd make some breakfast," I explained. "How does an omelet sound to you?"

"I'm fine with that," he said before he pointed down at my ankle. "How is your ankle treating you today?"

"Oh! It's all better now, thanks to you. Good as new," I said as I raised up on my tip toes and kissed his cheek. "I seriously owe you."

His cheeks were pink and my cheeks were pink. I didn't regret what I just did, though. It felt right to me. I actually wanted to do it again. I figured, though, that while one kiss on the cheek was probably warranted, a second would probably make things awkward.

We had omelets to accompany our coffee and tea. When that was done, he helped me wash up our dishes and then I got around to the one thing I forgot to do this morning. I turned on the radio and listened to the weather report. It would be cold, but sunny all day. Apparently we were getting a reprieve now since yesterday had been such a mess. When the weather was over, I flipped it to a music station like I usually did.

Cam glanced at the time and let out a sigh. "It's Sunday. I'm supposed to open the shop up today."

"Yeah, and I bet Howard and Laney were probably worried sick all night."

"You're right," he agreed with a frown. "I need to get going soon."

I felt sad that he was leaving. I mean, I knew that I would probably see him in town later. Still, though, I'd never had the chance to spend this much time with him before and it was nice. No, it was more than nice. I didn't want to see it come to an end so soon, just like the song that had just ended on the radio.

Cam came over and held out his hand. I cocked my head to the side and shot him a curious look. "What are you doing?"

"I'm asking you to have this dance with me before I go home," he replied as I placed my hand in his.

"Do you even know how to dance?" I couldn't stop myself from asking. I just couldn't picture it in my head. Cam could dance? _Cam_?

"Yes," he said as pink returned to his cheeks. "My mom taught me when I was ten." He pulled me to him and we got into position as the next song started up.

It wasn't a slow song, but it wasn't a fast song either. I felt like this song was just right. As we moved around the room, I forgot that my ankle was ever injured. He spun me around and he dipped me so low that my hair was touching the floor and I was laughing. I had no idea that Cam had this in him. I'd learned long ago that he wasn't the person I'd taken him for that first day we met. But even when I thought I already knew who he was now, he could still find ways to surprise me.

There was a pounding at my door then. I looked over at it and Cam looked over. He pulled me back up straight and said "What's going on?"

"I don't know," I answered before I went over to the door and called "Who is it?"

"It's me, Lillian!" a familiar voice said from behind the door.

I opened it up and Dirk hurried inside. "Goodness, Dirk, what's up? You look like you ran all the way over here from Konohana!"

He was definitely out of breath. He leaned over and put his hands on his knees and he drew in deep breaths.

"That's because I did," he admitted as he opened up his bag and fished something out. "This arrived for you and I headed out right away to get it to you. It looks really important."

I couldn't blame him for thinking it was important since that word was stamped onto the envelope in big red letters. It also had urgent stamped on it a few times. I frowned at the return address. It was from a hospital in the city I was from and I suddenly got a very bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. There was a shiver of foreboding running down my spine as I opened up the envelope and pulled the letter out. As I started reading it, I instantly became horrified. I dropped both the letter and the envelope on the floor and threw my hands against my mouth to stifle the strangled sound that was trying to come out.

"Lillian, what is it? What's happened?" Cam asked with alarm as he put his hands on my shoulders.

Dirk picked the papers up off the floor for me and I took them back, holding them so tightly against my chest that they started to crumple.

"It's my father. My dad. He. . ." And that was when the first tear fell.


	20. The Letter

**Author's Note: **Only three chapters are left after this one. In the meantime, here is chapter 20! And it's an emotional one for poor Lillian. Thanks for reading!

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"What about your dad? Lillian, please calm down. What's going on?" Cam asked, pulling me against his chest and wrapping his arms around me.

I let him hold me like that as I took a few shaky breaths and struggled to regain control. I finally pulled back and wiped at the tears on my cheeks as I replied. "It's a letter from a hospital in the city I'm from. It's my dad, he. . .Well, I'm his next of kin and they sent this letter to notify me that he's been admitted. H-He was in a car accident!"

Cam's mouth fell open and he was silent for a few moments. "Y-Your mom. She. . ."

"Yeah," I said when he trailed off. My mom had been struck by a car when I was fifteen. She'd been crossing the street to get to a shop on the other side. At the time, my passion was art. It had been all I wanted to do for the rest of my life. And I was good at it. I just knew that I was going to get into a great college and study art to my heart's content. That was my dream. My mom knew that. She told me that if I wanted to be an artist, then I could be. She told me I could be anything I wanted to be. No stress. No pressure. Just go for it.

There was an art supply shop just across the street from her job. When she got off work, she apparently decided to go over there and pick some stuff up for me as a surprise. Only, she never made it to the other side of the street. A car came speeding out of nowhere and hit her. They rushed her to the hospital and she was still alive. She was in a lot of pain, but she was able to think and to speak. They asked her what had happened and she told them the story right before she slipped into a coma that she never came out of. The doctors assured us that it was no use. Nothing was ever going to change. Her body was there, but her mind and soul were gone. My father finally took her off life support. And I never made art again aside from the classes I had to take in school. Those classes, though, were something I was required to do. When they were done, I was done. Art was as dead to me as my mother was.

"What else did the letter say?" Cam asked as he wiped at the fresh tears that started rolling down my cheeks.

"It says that they want to talk to me in person before they divulge any more information."

"That's good then. The letter isn't telling you that the worst possible scenario has happened. Try to stay positive, okay? Calm down. You need to think clearly now."

I nodded miserably. He was right. The letter wasn't saying that my father was dead, just that he was in the hospital and that I should come. My father would be alright. I _needed_ him to be alright. If he wasn't then I. . .No, no. I couldn't think about stuff like that. Cam said I should calm down so I could think clearly and I was going to do that.

I gave Cam a nod to show I'd heard him before I took a couple of steps back and turned toward Dirk. "Thank you for bringing this to me so quickly, Dirk. I really appreciate it."

He took a step forward and wrapped his arms around me. I put mine around him and accepted his hug. "A friend of mine once told me that friends look out for each other when they need it. I've got your back, Lillian."

I smiled a shaky smile as I remembered telling him that back when he got sick during the previous season. "Thank you," I said as we both pulled away. "Would you do me a favor and tell Yun that I'm sorry I couldn't make it to Konohana for her birthday? The blizzard stopped me."

"I will. Good luck and I hope that your dad is okay. I'm going to get out of your way now," he told me as he walked toward the door. "Bye, Lillian. Bye, Cam."

"Thanks again, Dirk," I told him. "I'll see you."

"Bye," Cam replied.

When Dirk was gone, I read the letter again to make sure I didn't miss anything and then folded it up before placing it back within the envelope. I then went over to my rucksack and put the letter inside. Cam came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me against his chest in a backwards hug. I tried to draw from his quiet strength.

"Do you need me to help you pack?" he asked softly next to my ear.

I nodded and then we sprang into action. I took everything I wouldn't be needing out of my rucksack and we replaced it with what I thought I might need. I didn't know how long I would be there so I had no idea if I was packing too much or too little. I would have to figure things out more once I got to the city and found out more about the situation.

When my rucksack was ready to go, we headed into town. We only paused long enough for me to get rid of the milk and stuff that was still in my bag from earlier. I shipped them off and hurried into town. My first stop was the pasture behind Jessica's shop.

Ash looked relieved when he saw me and Cam. He hurried over to the fence. "You two are okay! Howard and Laney said you never came home last night, Cam. They were worried sick, but I told them that you probably found Lillian and just stayed at her house to get out of the blizzard. I told them you'd probably come back into town in time to open up your shop and. . .Lillian, you look pale. What's wrong? What's happened?"

He looked at me, then he looked at Cam, then he looked at me again. "I, uh. . .Ash, I really need to ask you for a favor."

"Anything," he told me and I could tell he meant it. He was my friend and just like Dirk said he did, Ash had my back as well.

"I have to go out of town for a while. I don't know how long it'll be, but I need you to look after my livestock in the meantime. I know you have a lot of responsibilities here, but. . ."

"Of course I'll do it," he assured me as he put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry about it. You can consider it done. Why are you going out of town?"

I froze up then. Cam seemed to realize this since he suggested I go over by Grady's fence and let him finish the conversation with Ash. When they were done talking, Cam came over to me and said "I told Ash thanks for you. He'll take care of them, okay? And I'll look after the crops."

"Uh-huh," I said kind of numbly as I leaned against the fence.

Just then, Georgia came out of the barn and I waved her over so I could ask her to look after my pets. I didn't falter this time. I was able to explain the entire situation to her and she agreed without hesitation. She gave me her biggest and warmest hug before I got on my way again.

I didn't have time to go around town telling everybody what was going on and I didn't feel like going through the entire story again multiple times. Besides, I was pretty sure that word would spread to those who I didn't talk to personally soon enough. Cam assured me he would fill Howard and Laney in if Ash and Georgia hadn't done so already. He walked me back to the farm and watched as I saddled up Levi and led her out of the barn. I was leaving my cart behind. I wouldn't need it for the time being. I was hoping I would be able to leave Levi at the stable where I got Evie from for the time being. I didn't have anywhere to put the cart once I got to the city, though.

I stood there next to Levi and gazed up at Cam. So much had happened within the last couple of days. A lot of it had been good and some of it was bad. All I knew was that sorting through everything with Cam and trying to figure out where we currently stood would have to wait. My father was my top priority at the moment. Cam gave me an understanding smile, as if he could see directly into my mind.

"Let me know what's going on as soon as you can, okay?"

"I will," I assured him as I tried not to cry again.

"And stay calm. I can't guarantee that your father is okay, but that letter didn't say he wasn't. Try to stay positive. Your father would want that, right?"

I nodded. "He would. I-I need to get going now."

Cam pulled me into a hug and rested his chin on top of my head. I breathed in the scent of him and that helped me stave off the impulse to cry. He smelled like more than flowers. He smelled safe. He smelled familiar. He smelled comforting. "I'll see you when you get back," he promised as he released me and took a step back.

I gave him a small, shaky smile. As small and shaky as it was, though, it was genuine. "Thanks Cam."

I mounted Levi and looked down at him. He looked confused and shook his head. "For what?"

"For being you," I told him as I ran my hand down his cheek. He held my hand there for a second, but released it since he knew I really had to go.

I urged Levi forward and just like that we were on our way. I told myself I wasn't going to look back at him. This wouldn't be the first time I found myself unable to resist that urge. I glanced over my shoulder and saw him leaning against the barn. He raised his hand and waved. I didn't get a chance to wave back because Levi was going so fast that a few seconds was all it took for Cam to be out of my sight.

It was strange coming to that road I came up my very first day here. I had crashed my cart and that was when Ina and Rutger found me. That day I was on my way to start a new life in these two towns. Today I was leaving them and returning to the city. It was weird traveling this road again only in reverse. I didn't know what to make of it.

My mind went to my father. He had been in a car accident? I was upset that they sent me that letter and provided me with no information whatsoever other than that it happened. Of course my mind was going to the worst case scenario. I couldn't help it. I tried to follow Cam's advice and stay positive, but I was finding that to be extremely difficult. My mom got hit by a car and she didn't make it. I didn't think that the universe was going to just magically make an exception for my father. I wish that I'd had time to go up the mountain and make an offering. Still, though, I prayed to the Harvest Goddess that everything would be fine. I promised I would give her an offering every single day without fail if she came through for me this one time.

I rode pretty much the whole day and I took as few breaks as I could. Levi was taking the trip like a champ. When we arrived at the stable, I gave her a few horse treats as a reward before I went to go talk to the owner. She remembered me and after hearing my story she agreed to let Levi stay there until I came back for her. I offered to pay, but she told me not to worry about it. I was struck so much today by how kind people could be. Dirk had ran all the way across a mountain to bring me that letter. Ash and Georgia had agreed to look after my animals right away. Not only had Cam volunteered to take care of my crops, but he had also been my rock during all of this. And now the stable lady was helping out, too. There were some people out there who could be purposefully cruel, but I was constantly surrounded by infinitely kind people.

By the time the cab pulled up in front of the hospital, I was walking on pins and needles. The wind was blowing relentlessly and I pretty much ran into the hospital. Half of it was to get out of the wind and the other half was to reach my father as soon as I could.

I slowed down to a walk once I was inside the hospital. I was sure I looked like a hot mess already. I didn't want to draw attention to myself. I walked up to the front desk and rang the bell. A woman came out of an office and took her seat in front of the computer. "Can I help you, ma'am?"

"I hope so. My name is Lillian Larson. My father is Wade Larson. I was sent a letter telling me he's been admitted."

She pushed her glasses up farther on her nose and checked in the computer to see where my father was. "Ah, yes. Mr. Wade Larson. He was in a car accident?"

"Yes, ma'am."

She gave me a sympathetic smile as she continued. "They've moved him to the third floor in room 314. If you go to that elevator over there it should take you up."

"Thank you," I told her before I turned and hurried over to the elevator she had indicated.

I pushed the button and it was taking too long so I pushed it again. I was just about to push it once more when a couple of other people came up. I dropped my hand and tried to wait patiently for the elevator to arrive. There was a _ding_ sound and then the doors opened up. We all stepped inside and one of the other two people pushed the button for the second floor.

"Can you push for the third floor, too?" I asked. The woman hit the button and I said "Thanks."

We arrived on the second floor and as they exited the elevator they wished me luck. I wished them the same. They didn't know why I was there and I didn't know why they were there, but when somebody's at a hospital it's safe to assume they need some good luck.

When the doors finally opened up to the third floor, I looked at the directions on the wall. Room 314 was straight ahead and to the left apparently. As I walked down the corridor, I kept thinking back to seven years ago. I was still in school when my mom was rushed to the hospital. I was in my last class of the day. It was accounting. That certainly wasn't my favorite class, but my mom had been helping me with it. She was an accountant so that was kind of her thing. Therefore, I was pulling in a hard-earned high "B" in the class. She told me that I should do my best and whatever grade I got as a result would be okay with her. Just as long as she knew I'd tried. Other than that class, though, I had straight A's.

The school secretary came knocking on the door. Normally she would call somebody up to the office on the intercom. Not that day, though. For some reason, she'd felt that personally coming was necessary. Anyway, she knocked at the door. The teacher opened it up and chatted with her for a few seconds before calling me over. Whenever anybody is called up to the office, every student in the class takes notice. And I do mean _everybody_. I did it, too, whenever somebody else had to go. It's just how kids are. So they all turned their heads to watch as I got up from my seat and headed to the door.

"You'll be needing your bag, Lillian," the secretary told me from the doorway.

I frowned, but I went back to grab my backpack and then joined her out in the hallway. It was weird. I had no idea what was going on so I asked "What's up, Mrs. Warner? I'm not in trouble, am I?"

"No, no. Lillian, honey, of course you aren't. You're a wonderful student. You know that." She had her arm wrapped around me as we walked as if I needed the support or something.

"Then what is it?" I asked as we neared the office.

She didn't get to answer me because I spotted my father then. He was leaning against the wall across from the office. And he was crying. My father wasn't the type of man to show such emotions so freely in public. In fact, I had never seen him cry before in my entire life. Not until that very moment. That was when I knew that something was very, _very_ wrong. Now I stood in front of room 314 feeling much like I had on that long ago day. I took a deep, shaky breath and braced myself as I cautiously pushed the door open.


	21. Dad

**Author's Note:** I was actually supposed to write a story called _Chelsea's Island of Happiness_ before I wrote this one. In fact, I was five chapters into writing that when I had the insatiable urge to write a different story. After that story was over and I finally decided to write again, I felt like writing _this_ story. So I thought '_Shouldn't I write Chelsea's story before Lillian's since chronologically speaking, that game occurred first_?' But I was playing _The Tale of Two Towns_ and I wanted to write about Lillian and Cam. And now here we are. Perhaps I will get back into _Island of Happiness_ someday soon and finish up Chelsea's story since there is a love triangle eating away at the back of my mind. I hope I will! Now, though, I know I left you guys with a cliffhanger before and it's time you get to find out how Lillian's dad is. I've been rambling on, after all, and I'm not getting any younger so here's the chapter! Thanks for being here!

* * *

I did not expect what I found in that room. Well, my father was there and that was to be expected. His leg was in a cast and he had cuts on his face that had bandages on them. Other than that, though, he looked fine. He was sitting up watching a soap opera re-run. Because yes, my father liked to watch soap operas. He glanced over at the door and then did a double-take.

"Lillian?"

"Oh my goddess, daddy!" I said as I swiftly crossed the room. I tossed my rucksack in the general direction of a chair and then I threw my arms around my father. "Daddy, you're alright! You're actually alright! Daddy, I thought you were. . .you were. . ."

I started crying into the front of his hospital gown and he wrapped his arms around me. He rubbed the back of my head, stroking my hair. "Shhh, baby. It's okay. I'm going to be alright. Honey, calm down, okay? I'm here. Shhh. I'm still here."

When I finally reduced to sniffles and a few hiccups, I pulled away and got another look at him. He really was okay. Well, he was injured, but he was going to live. My dad reached over to the table next to his bed and grabbed a few tissues before handing them to me. I wiped away the tears and sniffled some more. "I-I got a letter from the hospital, daddy," I started to explain. "They told me you'd been in a car accident and that I should come right away. That was all it said. I d-didn't know what had happened to you so I thought. . ."

"Oh Lily Raye," he said as he took my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "You thought about your mom, didn't you?"

I gave him three jerky nods. "Yes, I did." Another tear slipped out, but I quickly wiped it away. "Daddy, what happened?"

He let out a sigh and tilted his head back as he thought. "Let's see. . .I was on my way home from a business dinner I had to attend. I sat at the red light and was starting to wonder if it would ever turn green. You know how the traffic lights are here. Even if you're in the only car at the lights, they'll make you wait an eternity like they want to watch you squirm on their little cameras."

My dad was convinced that there were people who watched you on the cameras they had poised above the lights. He took it one step further, though, by thinking that these people purposefully worked the lights specifically to irritate drivers such as him. "Yeah, I know," I indulged him with a smile. It was the biggest smile I'd had on my face since before Dirk banged on my door.

"The light finally turned green and I drove forward. Another car came out of nowhere, though. They ran the red light and crashed into the right side of the car. The next thing I can remember is waking up in the emergency room here."

"Wow," was all I could say to that. And then I thought of something. "Well who did this?! Who was the other driver who crashed into you?!" I was angry. I wanted to hire a lawyer and sue that person to kingdom come, if I could. Or have them put in jail or something!

My father looked sad then and shook his head mournfully. "He didn't make it. He was just a college student, honey. He was celebrating being done with all his final exams for the semester. He made a bad decision and got behind the wheel after having drinks."

"Oh, I. . .I. . .How do you know all that?"

"His family came to personally apologize. They're having a really hard time with this, as I'm sure you can understand, but they still came to see me to try to make amends on his behalf. I gave them my forgiveness."

I nodded mutely at that. I could understand. I felt sorry for the guy's family. And I was sure he hadn't deserved to lose his life in the accident. I felt sorry for both parties involved now and I understood my father's forgiveness.

Just then, there was a knock on the door and a man in a white lab coat walked in. He had dark hair, dark eyes, and he looked rather familiar although I couldn't figure out why. "Hello," he said when he spotted me there.

"Doctor, this is my daughter. Lillian, this is the doctor who has been looking after me."

"Oh! Hi. It's nice to meet you," I said as I hurried over to him and extended my hand. "I'm Lillian Larson."

"Yes, it is quite nice to meet you as well, Ms. Larson. I'm Doctor Goro Nakamura. I took over your father's care just as soon as he was transferred up here."

"I received a letter at my house from the hospital. It told me that my father had been in a car accident and that I should come here. Other than that, though, I was completely left in the dark."

The doctor looked apologetic as he explained. "I am most sorry about that, Ms. Larson. Such a thing is standard hospital protocol here. If you experienced any grief as a result then you have my personal apologies."

"I-It's okay," I told him. He talked in such a familiar way, though I couldn't yet put my finger on what it was about him. . . "Can you tell me about my father's injuries? I mean, what's the extent of them, sir?"

The doctor consulted his chart for a second before looking back at me. "Your father is a perfectly healthy man. His vitals look quite good, indeed. Obviously, his leg has been broken although it could have been a far more serious break. He also sustained a concussion as well as some lengthy cuts to his chest from the broken glass. Those injuries aside, he managed to garner some more minor cuts and a few bruises."

I gasped and looked at my father. "No, daddy! You have cuts on your chest? Did it hurt when I tackled you before?"

He laughed at me. He actually laughed at me. "You're being a tad bit dramatic, baby. And no, it didn't hurt."

Of course, I did have to wonder if he was lying about that last part. . .

"He is a most fortunate man, Ms. Larson. It certainly could have been worse. I would dare say he had an angel watching over him."

"I think so, too," I said with a bittersweet look as I met my father's eyes. He was thinking about my mom just the same as I was. "When will my father be released?"

"Actually, he has been cleared to return to his home as early as tomorrow morning." He then turned his attention to my dad. "Now, Mr. Larson, I heard that you did not eat your breakfast this morning. This cannot be tolerated. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and if I am to let you go home I am in need of a promise that you will eat as you are supposed to."

That was when everything clicked into place for me. It suddenly made perfect sense why the doctor looked and sounded familiar to me. And then there was the last name that I hadn't stopped to dwell on before. I couldn't stop myself from laughing. And it felt good to laugh. I hadn't laughed since this whole mess started. Both men in the room watched me with confused expressions. "Excuse me. Doctor _Nakamura_, wasn't it? You wouldn't happen to have a son named Hiro, would you?"

The doctor looked surprised, but he nodded his head slowly. "I do, as a matter of fact. He lives in a place called Konohana. You know of him?"

I smiled brightly then. "Yes, I do. He's a dear friend of mine. He's always studying so hard under Doctor Ayame. And he constantly puts those medical books of yours to good use. I think that he has a bright future ahead of him."

The doctor smiled fondly at me then as if we were instantly friends. "Splendid! I'm so glad to hear he is excelling at his studies. He will make a fine doctor yet."

"He even convinced me to start eating breakfast. So don't worry about my father. I'll make sure he has a hearty breakfast whether he wants to or not."

"You traitor," my father joked with a mock look of upset.

We all had a laugh over that. Doctor Nakamura excused himself after that and said he would be back to check on my father later. He also asked me to tell Hiro he expected a letter from him soon and to tell him what a wonderful new friend he had made. When the two of us were alone again I went and picked up my rucksack from its spot on the floor. I'd aimed for the chair and apparently missed.

"Where is Shelly?" I asked as I pulled the chair over close to the bed and sat down. I deposited my rucksack next to it.

Shelly was my father's girlfriend. They'd been together for quite a while now. He'd dated other women after my mom's death, but Shelly had been the only one with lasting power. I had finally worked through my upset over my father dating by the time he met her so I was able to accept her place in my father's life. He had told me that he was never going to marry her, though, and they weren't living together although she did have a key to the house. And she was okay with that. The two of them understood each other and the situation they were in and they were both perfectly fine with keeping things exactly the way they were. All of that was between and decided by the two of them and I had no intentions of adversely impacting their relationship.

"Shelly is at work. I had to make her go since she didn't want to leave. She says she wants to put in her vacation days so she can look after me, though."

"Perhaps she can hold off on that for now," I suggested to him. "I mean, I can hang around here for a little while and look after you. Then when I leave she can take over from there. That should give you more time to heal up some and adjust to your leg."

My father frowned as he studied my face. "Lillian, you have your own life now. You have a farm to run and I don't want that going under on account of me."

"The farm will be fine. Before I left, I asked my friends to look after it for me. Trust me, daddy, it's in good hands. When I return to Bluebell, it'll probably even be better than ever."

He looked amused and laughed lightly. "Oh Lillian," he spoke softly.

I raised my eyebrows at him. What was so funny? "What is it?"

"It's just that. . .You haven't called me _daddy_ since you were twelve years old. I remember you just shortened it to dad one day and said you were getting too old to talk like a little baby."

A smile tugged at the corners of my lips then. "Well, nearly losing you kind of put things into perspective. I don't mind a little baby talk just as long as you're alive to hear it."

It was decided that I would stay at our home in the city for about a week. Then Shelly would start her vacation days and I would head back to Bluebell. I wanted to stay longer, but my father insisted he would be fine. He said I had a lot to get back to and I should get back to it. Luckily, my dad had two cars so even if the one from the accident had been totaled, I had another car to drive him home in. Shelly had come to help me get him all settled back into the house. She even got the guest room on the first floor all set up for him since his bedroom was on the second floor and he couldn't walk up there.

"Wow," my father said as he wiped his mouth on a napkin and sat it aside. "Lily Raye, you weren't kidding. That was delicious! You've gotten even better since that time you sent me some food in that package."

I wrinkled my nose at the name he used, but I let it slide again. It was Tuesday night and I had made stew for him. It was his absolute favorite meal. I had used an old recipe that had been passed down through the family. "Awww. Thanks, dad. First I got Pierre's approval and now I've gotten yours! Life is good."

I stood up and cleared the dishes from the table. I sat them in the sink and knew I would return to wash them up a little later.

"Honey, would you help me to the living room? There's a game on tonight that I want to watch," he asked as he pointed toward his crutches.

"Can do," I replied as I hurried over to him and helped him stand up. As he gripped onto the table, I retrieved his crutches for him.

"That's a pretty scent," he commented as he walked toward the living room with the aid of the crutches.

"Hmm?" I asked.

"Your perfume. It's a pretty scent. I think it suits you perfectly."

"This? Oh, thanks, dad. I'm glad you like it," I replied with a bit of a blush. One of the things I had deemed necessary to bring with me was the perfume Cam had given me. And I happened to be wearing it.

"So who is he?" my dad asked as he made it to his recliner. He held the crutches out to me before he carefully sank into the chair. I sat his crutches against the nearby wall. I found it pretty ironic that I had hurt my ankle before and then my father had one-upped me by breaking his leg. Apparently, the Larsons needed to be very careful with their appendages.

"_He_?" I questioned. "He, who?"

"The gentleman who gave you that perfume. I wasn't born yesterday. So who is he? Who is the young man who has been giving my little girl gifts?"

"W-What?" I sputtered, suddenly thinking about Cam. On Sunday I had sat down and written him a letter to let him know that my father would be fine, just as he'd asked me to. He'd sent me a letter back in record time telling me how relieved he was and how much everybody missed me. Really, though, I wondered what strings he'd asked Dirk to pull to get the letter there so fast. . .I planned on writing him back soon to let him know exactly when I would be back in town.

"So which one is it? I know you've written about different ones in your letters to me."

Geez, nearly dying had made my father awfully nosy. "Dad, do you seriously want to talk about guys with me?" He'd tried and failed after my mom's death. It had been too painfully awkward for the both of us.

"Yes, I do. Just the other day I very nearly lost the chance to talk to you about anything ever again. I don't want to squander the time that I have. Not anymore."

Oooh. He was playing the near-death experience card. That was sneaky. My father gave me a determined nod of his head and I let out a resigned sigh. "It was Cam. Cameron Drayton."

"Cam? Cam, Cam, Cam. . ." he said, trying to remember who Cam was. "Ah, yes. He's the florist who used to get you so fired up, correct?"

I smiled, remembering back when nothing made me more angry than Cam giving me the cold shoulder. "That's the one. As I have told you in my letters, though, we're good friends now. Just the other day, he even saved me from a blizzard. And when I found out you. . ."

"Wait a minute, young lady. What is this about a blizzard?" he interrupted with a stern look.

Oh, yeah. I hadn't had a chance to tell him about the blizzard yet. So I launched into the story of how I was heading to Konohana to see Yun and the blizzard came out of nowhere. I told him about how I had twisted my ankle and Cam had come to my rescue. I told him pretty much everything that had happened leading up to my arrival at the hospital.

My father was staring over at a picture of my mother when I finished up my story. "You were supposed to have dinner with him tonight, you say?"

"Uh-huh. I'm sure he'll give me a rain check, though. Don't worry about it. He understands that it's important for me to be here right now," I told him, not wanting him to blame himself for the postponement.

He was quiet for a little while before he said "This Cam. He sounds like a remarkable young man. I'd like to meet him sometime."

Hearing him say that made me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. It seemed as if Cam had just gained my father's approval and I hadn't realized until that moment just how important that approval was to me. "That sounds great, dad. I'd like for you to meet him sometime, too."


	22. At Long Last

**Author's Note: **There's only one more chapter left after this one. Even if it is kind of bittersweet, I've been eagerly awaiting my chance to share these last two with everybody! When you've spent a long time leading up to something, it's always awesome to finally reach it. Well, we've finally reached something in this one. I hope that you like this particular chapter, especially the end of it. Thanks for reading and reviewing! Here it is!

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My departure day ended up being Monday since that was when Shelly's boss told her that her vacation could start. So I would be arriving in Bluebell just a little over a week after I left. As strange as it had been sleeping in my old childhood bedroom again, it had been just as strange leaving it behind once more. I had an image in my mind of Cam huddled up in the bed in his old room at my house. I now understood how strange that must have felt for him.

Shelly had arrived to take over caring for my father. We stood on the porch of the house he had raised me in and I gave him a great big hug. It wasn't easy to accomplish around his crutches and the jackets that were keeping us warm, but I managed. "I love you dad. So, _so_ much. Okay? I wish I had been able to tell mom that one last time. I'm so happy that I still have you here to say it to."

He kissed me on my forehead and then on each cheek the way he used to when I was a little girl. "I love you, too, baby. I look forward to reading your letters. Of course, seeing you in person is always better. I know every parent has to let their child grow up and leave the nest, but I miss you."

"I miss you, too, daddy. I look forward to you visiting me soon," I told him since he had promised he would come out to Bluebell as soon as he was healed up enough to travel. "You'll love Bluebell, I already know." As much as I loved Konohana, Bluebell was my home now and I had decided I wanted it to stay that way. When my father came to see me, that's exactly where I would be. I looked down at my watch and frowned. "I should get going."

He let out a sigh as I stepped back. "I'll see you soon. You take care of yourself."

"I will," I told him as I turned my attention toward the third person standing on the porch. "Take good care of him, Shelly."

"Of course. I promise he'll be fine," she assured me with a hug of her own.

As I made my way down the stairs and to the waiting taxi, I thought about how Shelly was the kind of person my mother would have liked. I waved at them from the window and watched as she helped him back in the house. I had baked him plenty of cookies since he had such a sweet tooth and filled up the cookie jar as a parting gift. I had instructed Shelly to give him the entire jar once I was gone, hoping that might perk him back up a little. I'd hidden them so he couldn't eat them all up before I left just for that purpose. I asked the driver to take me as far as the stable and after I paid his fare, I eagerly had my reunion with Levi. She looked like she had been doing just fine and was thrilled to see me. I gave her a treat and then she was _beyond_ thrilled. I thanked everybody at the stable for looking after my horse and then we headed out.

I didn't push Levi as hard this time as I had before. Now that the emergency was behind me, we were able to take it at a comfortable pace. We also stopped to have lunch before we set out again. The world was snowy white and beautiful. It was pristine and peaceful. I felt content as I traveled along. As sad as it was to leave my father again, I was eager to get home to Bluebell. I wanted to see everybody in the two towns. I missed their faces. I missed that mountain area that had become my happy place.

It had been snowing earlier in the day, but it ended up being nice and sunny during the afternoon. It was cold, but I didn't mind it. After what I had just been through, I felt that nothing could get me down. I grew excited as I finally hit the path that would lead me back to the two towns. The first time I had traveled through it, I had been uncertain about where my life was going. The second time, I had been uncertain about my father's fate. Now, though, I wasn't gripped with fear or uncertainty. This time was different. _I_ was different.

I let out a sigh of relief as I made it through the gates of Bluebell and turned left to head up my driveway. A silly grin spread across my face when I caught sight of the farm. My pets had herded my livestock outside like they normally would and they started a huge racket when they saw me. They were super excited. Aram flew overhead. My dogs and my cat ran along at Levi's feet as we came to a stop in front of the barn.

I dismounted my horse and crouched down. Penelo rubbed against my leg and I could honestly say that was the most friendly she had ever been with me. The tides had finally turned in my favor! Night nuzzled at my hand until I rubbed his head and Rufus nearly knocked me over in his quest for affection.

When I was done with them, I greeted my livestock and they were just as happy to see me. Even the younger ones were pleased. It was nice knowing that I had been missed. It was nice knowing that these animals who entrusted me with their lives cared about my continued presence. When I went into the house I found that it was exactly as I'd left it. I made quick work of unpacking and then I took a shower to warm myself up all the way. I was standing in front of the mirror blow-drying my hair when something caught my attention out the corner of my eye. There was something sitting next to my radio that I didn't remember leaving there. Apparently I'd failed to notice it when I first came in.

I unfolded it and found that it was a note somebody had left for me. "Waiting for you in town. Hope to see you soon," I read aloud with a quizzical expression.

The only people who had access to the house while I was gone were Cam, Ash, and Georgia. It looked like Cam's handwriting to me. I felt sad as I looked down at the note, though. It was Monday. That meant Cam would be out of town. I wouldn't get to see him. I'd known that even as I wrote him my last letter to let him know when I was coming. Still, though, I would be going into town even if he wasn't there. I was eager to see the people of Bluebell and they deserved to know that I was back. And I had to thank Ash and Georgia for coming through for me when I needed it.

I made quick work of getting dressed and headed back out. I made sure to take a look at my crops as I walked through. The flowers in particular were positively lovely. Cam knew exactly what he was doing and it showed. I found myself wishing that he could grow flowers here all the time. I remembered how it had been before Dirk showed up at my door. I remembered how Cam had been in the house with me and it had just felt so. . .right. Having dinner with him had felt right. Seeing him first thing in the morning with sleep still in his eyes had felt right. Breakfast with him had felt right. Thinking about how much I loved him. . .that felt right.

Something was strange when I finally stepped into town. It was quiet. It was so very quiet. And there wasn't a single soul in sight. Ash wasn't in his pasture. Georgia wasn't in hers. Eileen wasn't hanging out in front of her shop. Nobody was lingering near the request board or the town square. I poked my head inside each shop and found myself even more confused than before. It was like a ghost town! Everybody was gone. Something did catch my eye, though. There was a single request up on the board. When I went up to it, I noticed that it didn't say who the requester was. There wasn't a reward posted. Yet it was a request for me that asked me to come to Town Hall.

Weird. I took the request off the board and walked up the steps that led to the town hall. When I walked inside I didn't see anybody. Rutger wasn't behind the counter. Rose wasn't in the library. When I went upstairs there was nobody in their home. I was starting to get frustrated! It was like I was playing a game of cat and mouse and I was the mouse! Wait, no, I was the cat. Everybody else was the mouse. Right? Right. I finally thought that maybe I should check the room they used for special events. I doubted anybody would be there, but it was literally the last place in town left for me to look. When I opened up the door I did not expect to find what I did.

"Surprise!"

There in that room was literally every single face I had been wanting to see. Every person from Bluebell _and_ Konohana were gathered together in one place! Well, with the exception of Cam. "Oh my goddess, you guys! All of this for. . .for _me_? T-This is. . .wow!" I didn't even really have the words at the moment, I was so shocked.

"Welcome back, Lillian!" Nori said as she came at me first with a hug. Howard grabbed me after that and nearly squeezed the life out of me. I didn't mind it, though. I was happy that he had so much emotion for me in there that he would hug me so tightly. It seemed like I was getting passed around to every single person in the room. They all wanted to say hi to me and let me know how much they'd missed me.

"I'm so pleased that you have returned, Lillian!" Hiro said with a bright smile before hugging me as well. "Your presence has indeed been missed."

"Awww! Thank you, Hiro. I've missed you, too. Oh! That reminds me. My father is going to be perfectly fine and I have your father to thank for that."

"Pardon? I'm afraid I do not understand," Hiro told me with a questioning look. I took pity on him and didn't make him wait for me to elaborate.

"Doctor Goro Nakamura? I met him at the hospital since he was my dad's doctor during his stay there." It seemed like life could tie people together in strange and unexpected ways. Not only was he Hiro's father, but he had also treated Ying before as well as my father.

"My father? Really?"

"Mmm-hmm. And he told me he is looking forward to a letter from you. Oh, and he thinks I'm kind of awesome."

When my conversation with Hiro was over, I went to grab something to eat. Howard, Laney, and Yun had set up a big table full of delicious food. I noticed Mako and Ayame not too far away standing pretty darn close and laughing. I wondered what in the world I had missed in a week for that to happen. I was happy for them. It made me miss Cam even more, though. The room was full of people who were all there for me, yet I still felt unnervingly alone. And that was because Cam was the missing piece that I needed to fall into place.

I was just about to grab some of Yun's famous dumplings and stuff my face until I felt a little better when I felt somebody tap me on my shoulder. When I turned around, I wasn't sure what I should do. Should I gasp from shock? Should I jump up and down from excitement? Instead, I threw my arms around Cam's neck and held him close. "Cam! Y-You're here!"

"Did you miss me?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around me and rested his chin on the spot that was reserved for him, which was the top of my head.

"Uh, yeah, I did! I missed you so much! Like. . ._so _much. But what are you doing here? It's Monday. I thought you would be out of town." I pressed my ear against his chest and listened to the steady beating of his heart. He was real. He was actually there with me at last. That last missing piece had finally fallen into place and everything felt just right.

He kissed the top of my head and replied with "Maybe that's because I missed you, too. _So _much. You're not planning on going away again anytime soon, are you?"

"Definitely _not_," I informed him as I tightened my arms around him.

"Good," he told me as his arms tightened more as well. "I like the sound of that."

With Cam there, that only made the party even better for me. Everybody ate and drank and talked and danced and we were all happy. Mikhail even played his violin for us. I got the shock of my life when Kana sat down at the piano and started playing! Georgia had accompanied his performance by singing along to his song. Not only were Rahi and Ying running around and having a good time, but Cheryl had joined them and all three seemed to be getting along perfectly. . .for now. I was amazed that Ina and Rutger had been able to bring everybody together like this. Sure, the two mayors stayed on separate sides of the room. Still, though, it made me feel like we would be able to open the tunnel up sooner rather than later. The future of both towns was looking very bright to me.

When the party came to an end, everybody hugged me again on their way out and told me how happy they were that my father was okay. Even Reina had been outwardly happy to see me. She'd smiled and given me a hug, too. I also didn't miss the way she'd been looking at Ash during the party. And then I thought about how perfect they could be together. Reina was similar to Cam in many ways. Ash was Cam's best friend.

The more I thought about it, the more certain I felt that Ash was exactly the kind of guy that a girl like Reina needed in her life. It also didn't escape my notice how Laney and Mikhail had been chatting in a corner together. Really now, what happened during that one little week I was gone that brought all of this about?! Was some mysterious girl going to come traipsing out of the mountains and steal Dirk's heart next? Life was beyond interesting these days, let me tell you.

Cam offered me his arm when we made it to the town square. He wanted to walk me home and I definitely did not mind. We maintained a companionable silence for a while before I decided to break it. "You know," I started saying to Cam as we started up my driveway. "My father is coming to Bluebell after he's healed up enough to make the trip."

"Yeah? That's great, Lillian. I know how much you miss him since you write him so often," he said, giving my arm a little squeeze.

"Mmm-hmm. He said something to me, though, when I was gone. He told me that he wants to meet you."

Cam stopped walking, leaving us about ten feet away from the house, and tugged at his hat. "Me?"

"Yep. _You_. I may have mentioned some things about you to him." That was an understatement. Cam had come out sounding like a hero. Then again, he had been my hero hadn't he? "He described you as being remarkable and he hasn't even laid eyes on you yet."

Cam cleared his throat a few times and I could tell his face was pink, even in the small amount of light coming through the windows of the house. "I-I'd be honored and happy to meet him, too."

"You are, though. Remarkable, I mean," I admitted quietly as I looked up at him.

He seemed surprised by my words before he smiled at me tenderly. Apparently he felt like admitting something as well since he told me "I always feel at peace when I'm with you. . ." He then started tugging at his hat as he considered what he was going to say next. "I guess what I mean is that you're a really important person in my life, Lillian."

"I-I-I am?"

Snow suddenly started to fall gently around us and he gazed at me with those crystal clear, emerald eyes of his. I was sure I could mine gemstones in the tunnel someday and still never come across an emerald as beautiful as his eyes. "Look, Lillian. There's something I've. . .been meaning to do. I've been wanting to do it for a while now. A long while. I wanted to do it earlier, but the party just didn't seem like the right time or place. I-It _definitely _wasn't the right time or place. Out here, though, the time just seems. . .right."

My breath caught in my lungs as Cam gently put his hand on the small of my back and pulled me toward him. With a finger on my chin, he tilted my head back and he slowly leaned down toward me closer, closer, closer. But not close enough. Not yet. I felt my eyes drifting closed of their own accord. I didn't consciously think that I wanted to close them. Then again, I couldn't consciously think much of anything at the moment. His lips were hovering over mine, about half an inch away. He was so close that I could feel his breath on my lips and it sent little shivers running down my spine.

"I want to kiss you, Lillian," he said softly, so softly. His voice was warm. Infinitesimally so. It was smoother than silk and I reveled in the sound of it. "May I?"

Asking me with his lips hovering over mine wasn't exactly fair. He could have asked me almost anything and I probably would have said yes. Even if I had been standing five feet away from him, though, and he'd asked me that my answer would have been the same either way.

"Yes," I breathed. There was probably nothing in the world I wanted more at that very moment than for him to kiss me. "You may."

It felt like a lifetime had passed. It felt like two more passed after that. It felt like I had been waiting forever for it to happen and then. . .it did. His lips met mine. They were soft and fluttering at first, like the downy wings of a baby bird spreading them for the very first time. Boom-clap. My heart started beating at an unsteady cadence and it was faster than I could ever recall before. He kissed me softly and leisurely like we had all the time in the world. It was a slow burn. Whereas Kana's kiss had been rushed and demanding, Cam's was the opposite. His kiss was unhurried. It was give and take with me meeting him halfway. It was no less intense, though. In fact, it was even more so. But that intensity was tempered by something so beautiful that I couldn't even put a name to it.


	23. The Conclusion of Lillian's Tale

**Author's Note: **Wow. Hello, friends. And here we are, you and me, on the last chapter. In case anybody is wondering if that was a slight Doctor Who reference then yes. Yes, it was. Anyway, I tried to fight writing this story. I read a lot of Harvest Moon fics featuring Lillian and Cam in the hopes of making myself feel satisfied enough not to write my own story. That didn't work. I'm happy it didn't, though, because I'm so glad I got to write this fanfic! And I'm happy that so many people from so many places have read it! Thank you to everybody who has taken the time to favorite this story or follow it. Thank you _so_ much to all the people who have reviewed and especially to the one who has reviewed like. . .almost every chapter! You know who you are. _Most of all_, though, thank you to _everybody_ for simply showing up and reading all these chapters. Here is the conclusion to Lillian's story! I hope you like it and I'd love to know what you think.

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Cam ran his fingers through my hair and my arms found their way around him. He finally broke the kiss and kissed my nose once. Twice. I brought one of my hands up and stroked the side of his face with it. And then we were kissing again. By the time we pulled away from each other, we were both laughing shakily. Breathing unevenly. I wobbled a little on my feet and Cam steadied me. When did my knees become like jelly?

"Wow," he exhaled, leaning his forehead against mine.

"Uh, yeah. Definitely wow," I sighed contentedly. The snow was still falling around us and yet I didn't feel the slightest bit cold.

"There's one more thing I wanted to do," he confessed as I fought the urge to kiss him again. "One more thing I _need_ to do."

As great as the last thing he'd felt he needed to do was, I couldn't wait for what was next. "Alright. What is it?"

He unzipped his jacket a little before he reached into the inner pocket of his vest and pulled something out. It was a single red rose. It was absolutely perfect. Miraculously so considering how I'd just been pressed against him. Perhaps his jacket had cushioned and protected it. "I know it's not the season for them, but. . .Did I ever tell you what the meaning of a red rose is?"

I remembered that I'd bought red roses from him for Flower Day way back when. I'd bought them because they were what he had readily available, but I'd never stopped to wonder about some deeper meaning. "No, I don't think you did. W-What's the meaning?"

He took my hand and slipped the rose between my fingers. I closed my hand around it, musing about how he had taken care to remove the thorns beforehand. Cam took my other hand and kissed my knuckles before answering. "Red roses mean love."

I'm pretty sure I stopped breathing then as I processed his words. Here I had been stewing over the fact that I was absolutely in love with him for weeks and he was in love with me, too? How full can one heart get before it just. . .bursts? Before it bursts and shoots little red heart-shaped confetti all over the place?

"Is this your way of telling me you love me?" I asked him then. I wore the biggest smile, gazing at him like there was nothing else to look at ever again.

"Yes. Yes it is."

"Good. Because I love you, too, Cam." There. I'd finally said it. I felt so _light_. It was like a weight had been lifted. My feelings were now verbally out there and nothing was weighing me down anymore. I even felt like gravity couldn't stop me.

"I was hoping you'd say that," he admitted. "Because I wanted to formally ask you to. . .be my girlfriend. Oh, and if you'd spend the Starry Night Festival with me then that would make me very happy. Do you want to go with me?" I grabbed the sides of his face and pulled him back down to me as I brushed my lips over his. When I pulled away he said "Was that a yes?"

"Yes," I answered as I tried to wipe the silly grin off my face. I failed. "Just one thing, though. I. . .want to be your flower."

He raised an eyebrow at that. "You want to be my flower?"

"Uh-huh. I want there to be a special name that only you can call me."

"You. . .want me to call you Flower?" he asked dubiously as his eyebrows disappeared under his hat.

"No, silly. That is not what I'm trying to say. What I'm trying to say is that to everybody else I'm Lillian. To you, though, and only you. . .I want to be your Lily." Not Lillian. Not Flower. And certainly not Lily Raye. I wanted to be his Lily.

"Lily?" he said as he stroked the side of my face with the back of his hand. "I think I can manage that. Fine, then. From now on, you're my Lily."

Cam and I became the talk of the town after that. Once one person knew that we were officially together, the news spread like wildfire throughout both towns. Some people had even come forward and said they'd been shipping us all along. I wasn't surprised to find out Nori was one of them. Ash had come out and admitted that he'd had feelings for me for a little while. Then he'd told me that he backed off when he realized Cam did, too, and that he'd thought we were right for each other since then. And I had been completely oblivious to those feelings before just like with Kana. Ash had informed me, though, that somebody else had caught his eye recently and I was pretty sure I knew who that was. Howard had wanted to throw us a huge party. We reminded him that we were dating, not getting married. Not yet, at least. We were pretty much inseprable after that. Cam was over at my house. . .his house. . .whatever you wanted to call it, pretty much all the time. Well, when my father came to visit from the city, Cam had made himself a little more scarce. Him and my father hit it off right away, though. My dad definitely approved of my new boyfriend.

The time finally came when Cam and I decided to take the next step. I was very fond of the word boyfriend, but when he asked me to exchange that term for husband instead, I wholeheartedly agreed. We had dated for a while before he asked me to marry him. And by a while I mean we dated for a little more than a season before we knew we didn't want to wait any longer. We were married in a beautiful ceremony one breezy summer day. The weather was perfect. It wasn't too hot. The sky was clear. And the view from the summit had never looked more beautiful to me. Seeing him stand there in his white suit with his violet boutonniere had made my heart skip a beat. We were starting a brand new life together. I'd thought that moving out of the city had been the start of my new life. I had been wrong. My life started the minute we both said "I do."

Nine years passed. Nine wonderful years. Sometimes it felt like time had passed very slowly. Other times it felt like time had gone by in the blink of an eye. It was the first day of autumn. Cam was at his shop and I had fallen asleep on the couch after finishing up all my work. I had been reading a book one minute and the next thing I knew, I was asleep.

Now, though, I felt something poking me on my cheek and I thought I heard a little voice saying "Mom. Mom? Come on now. Wake up!"

I opened one eye and saw the sweet face of a darling little girl peering down at me. So then I opened the other eye as well. "Violet? Baby, I could have sworn you had school today."

Violet was our daughter. The day she came into the world, I was convinced that I had never seen anything more beautiful in my entire life. Cam had sworn up and down that she was the spitting image of me. He had held her in his arms and the second she opened her eyes, he'd let out a little gasp. She'd had him fixed in her violet gaze with eyes so like mine and he'd said "I know we've been throwing around all these names, but. . .I was thinking Violet might be a good name. . ."

"Violet," I'd said as I kissed her impossibly soft cheek. "Violet it is."

"Mom," Violet interrupted now as she tried to regain my attention. "We only had a half day of school today. Besides, it's dad's birthday. Don't you remember?"

Usually when she got out of school, she'd come home long enough to say hi and then go out playing with her friends until Cam came home. These days, the two towns were full of children. Ash and Reina had a daughter named Colby. She looked just like a miniature Reina, but she had all of Ash's personality. Laney and Mikhail had a son named Jackson. Even though him and Violet were practically cousins, Cam had declared that we would have to keep an eye on him one of these days. Georgia and Kana had a son named Akito, but Cam had felt Akito lacked Jackson's charm and therefore, he wasn't as much of a threat to the heart of his little girl. Then again, it could have been the fact that he'd seen Violet and Jackson playing in the mud together one day that had caused the little alarm bells in his head to start ringing. . .And besides, you don't necessarily have to be the most charming guy in town to capture a girl's heart.

Then there were the children of Konohana. Nori and Hiro had a sweet and kind daughter named Keiko. Dirk and Ulyssa, who had appeared during my second year in the two towns, had a daughter named Willow who Violet loved playing on the mountain with. Violet treated her like she was her younger sister. And then, to everybody's shock and awe, Ayame and Mako had a son by the name of Makoto. Cam had his eye on Makoto as well. Any other little boys in the two towns were so young that Cam did not perceive them as a threat. Therefore they were not on his radar. I personally thought that Akito was a dark horse in this race that Cam was never going to see coming. . .Even though I'd finally told him about that time Kana had kissed me, he still didn't think that Akito was in the running.

With the tunnel open for everybody to travel between the two towns, our daughter had no shortage of friends to help occupy her free time. She even idolized the older children. Well, they weren't exactly children anymore. Cheryl, Rahi, and Ying were all nearly adults at this point and Violet thought they were cool so she liked following them around and coercing them into playing with her. Once Ying had grown out of the health problems she had as a child, she had been allowed to move back to the city to be with her parents. Even though she loved and missed them very much, though, she had ultimately decided to return to Konohana. Rahi was very relieved and so was Violet. Cheryl had been a little too busy for Violet as of late, though, considering a young man of nineteen named Phillip had recently moved into the Konohana farm. _I _was relieved considering I had always been worried a love triangle would brew between Rahi and those two young ladies.

So with all of these people to keep her entertained, Violet was a very busy little girl. Sometimes, though, she'd come home a bit early and we'd walk over to Cam's shop so the three of us could walk home together.

"Of course I do, my love," I said as I poked her on her little button nose, finally giving her an answer to her question. "How could I forget your daddy's birthday? It's one of the most important days of my entire year."

She giggled and grabbed my arm, trying to tug me up from the couch. "Come on. We have to finish getting everything ready then."

I looked at my watch and realized she was right. Cam liked to close up the shop a little early whenever there was a special occasion going on. I marked my place in my book and sat it on the coffee table before getting to my feet. "Okay, Vi. What should we do first to get ready?"

She scrunched up her little nose as she thought about what I'd asked her. "Hmm. . .Ooh! Decorations! We need to make decorations! Like. . .we can hang them from the ceiling!" To emphasize her point, she threw her little arms up in the air.

Luckily for us, I had some very large sheets of drawing paper that we could cut up and configure into some kind of a banner that we could decorate. At some point, I had felt I was ready to dabble in art again. Maybe it was the day Violet had sat down and drawn a still life of the fresh sunflowers Cam had brought home for me after work. The still life, by the way, was an exact likeness. She obviously had a gift and I felt it was my job as her mother to help her develop it. My mother's death had taken my art away from me. My daughter's life had brought it back.

And like my mother, I always told Violet that she could be anything she wanted to be. If she wanted to take over the farm one day then she could do that. If she wanted to pursue art, I was fine with it. If she wanted to do something completely different like traveling the world to learn all about flowers, that was okay with me, too. I just wanted her to be happy. That was what I felt to be truly important.

"Cut along that line as straightly as you can," I advised Violet as she carefully handled the pair of child-safe scissors and cut the paper. When she was done, I glued the strips of paper together into a banner. I then got out some paint and let her loose on our banner. She handled her paintbrush with the same kind of patience and confidence that Cam did his flowers. She even painted some flowers on the banner on either side of the words _Happy Birthday Dad_, which she had written in big capital letters.

"Done," she declared as she stood back to survey her work. She scrunched up her little nose again as she critiqued the banner. It must have met with her approval, though, because she gave me a very pleased smile.

"Alright. Leave it sitting there for a little while and we'll let it dry. Then I'll hang it up."

"But mom, _I_ want to hang it up," she protested.

"You're too young to get up on the ladder, sweetie. What will your dad think if he comes home and finds out you fell off the ladder and got hurt?"

"He'd. . .be sad?"

"Mmm-hmm," I replied as I kissed her on her cheek. I kept kissing her cheek until she laughed. I probably shouldn't be up on the ladder myself, all things considered, but one of us had to do it.

Violet and I went into the kitchen to get dinner started. We decided that I would be in charge of the actual dinner and she would be in charge of the desert. Tonight we were having tom yum goong, Cam's favorite, along with a salad. And that would be followed by the cake Violet was baking. Even though Cam wasn't a big fan of sweets, we had one on his birthday every year for Violet. He was fine with having a cake on his birthday just as long as it wasn't chocolate. He abhorred chocolate party cakes. This year, I was leaving the cake up to Violet since she'd asked me multiple times for the chance to make it. She loved baking. She excelled at it even at her young age and only required minimum help from me to do it. I did the heavy lifting and wouldn't let her near the hot oven. Other than that, though, it was all her. And so I wondered if someday she might become a baker instead of a farmer or an artist or a florist. Perhaps I was biased, but I was pretty sure I had a very talented daughter.

The soup was cooking, the salad was ready, and the cake was baking so the two of us decided we would get ourselves ready for when Cam came home. I took down my daughter's hair and brushed it out before fixing it back into the pigtails she had always loved so much. I tied her ribbons at the top of her pigtails just the way she liked them and I made sure the ribbons matched her favorite dress, which she had insisted on wearing for Cam's birthday.

For my last birthday, Cam had gone to Nori and requested that she make something for me. He had asked her to make me a beautiful dress. And he had asked Nori to make it purple, which was his favorite color. I'd loved it immediately, but I had been rather surprised considering Cam had always preferred to see me in clothes that were more casual rather than fancy. I hadn't had much occasion to wear the dress yet. Today, though, qualified as the perfect occasion.

"Okay, we're both pretty now," Violet declared as she looked at our reflections in the mirror of mine and Cam's bedroom.

"Really? I actually thought you were very pretty before," I informed her.

"Well, you were pretty too. Now, though, we're even more pretty!"

She placed a soft kiss on my cheek before she hopped up from my knee and turned to run off. "Wait a minute, Vi. Come back over here."

She turned on her little heel and made her way back over to where I was sitting. "But mom, the cake," she reminded me. And the soup."

"I know, I know," I acknowledged since the last thing I'd want was for Cam's birthday dinner to end up burned and ruined. "Just stand there for a few more seconds." I grabbed a bottle of perfume and sprayed some on her before spraying some on me as well. "There. Now you're all done."

She turned back around and ran out the room as I sat the bottle of perfume back in its place. It was exactly the same kind of perfume Cam had made me years ago. It really had become my signature scent since it was all I ever wore anymore and whenever I ran out of it, Cam never failed to make me more.

I quickly made my way to the kitchen and found Violet standing there waiting for me since she knew I didn't want her touching the oven. I finished up the soup before helping Violet with the cake. We set the table and got everything in place before I made quick work of hanging up the banner. She was very proud of it and asked me more than once if I thought her father would notice it. I told her that he would not be able to miss it.

Around four-thirty I heard a ruckus outside. I looked out the window and saw that all of our pets had gathered around a very handsome man standing in front of the house. These pets included Penelo and every single stray cat Cam had come across in the last nine years. Yep. We'd kept every single one. He was especially a sucker when it came to kittens. He'd come home rubbing the back of his head and looking conflicted each time, telling me about how the kitten had no mother cat around and how he didn't know what else to do other than bring it home. It wasn't just the cats, though, that loved him. All of our pets adored him. Cam saw me watching him through the window and smiled. Even after all these years, my heart still did that boom-clap thing for him.

"Is dad home?" Violet asked as she jumped up and down, trying to see out the window that was just a little too high for her.

"Mmm-hmm. He'll be in any moment now."

As soon as I finished speaking those words, Cam came through the door. Violet launched herself at him and he caught her, picking her up in his arms. "Dad! Dad! Do you notice anything different about the room? Anything at all?" she asked him.

Cam played dumb for a few seconds before having his aha moment. "Hmm. . .You know, I think I did notice a beautiful banner hanging up wishing me a happy birthday. You wouldn't happen to be the one who made such a wonderful thing for me, would you?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "I am! Well, mom helped, too. Do you like it?"

"I do," he said before he kissed her on the forehead and smiled at her adoringly.

"We made you dinner, too," Violet told him when he sat her down.

She skipped away to make sure that everything was as we'd left it. When she was gone, Cam walked over to me and pulled me into his arms before giving me the sweetest of kisses. "I missed you, my Lily," he told me as he rested his chin on top of my head like he always did. I would never get tired of that.

"I missed you, too. Happy birthday, honey," I told him as I breathed in the scent of him. I would never get tired of that, either.

"You look beautiful," he said as he let me go and gazed down at me with a magnificent light in his eyes.

"Well thank you. There's this strikingly handsome man I know who had this dress made just for me," I whispered to him as if I were telling him some conspiratorial secret.

A smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he said "He's a man of good taste, I see."

"I'd have to agree with that. You know, what? I think he's definitely a keeper."

Violet came back into the room then and said "Dad, do you think I look pretty, too? Am I pretty like mom is?" She then twirled around, the skirt of her dress fanning out around her.

"You're prettier than the prettiest flower at my shop," he told her before she giggled and ran to get her present for him out of her room.

Speaking of presents, I had one of my own for my husband. "So, Cam. What's your ideal birthday? Picture your birthday about ten years from now and tell me what it would look like."

He gazed off into the distance with a nostalgic look on his face, obviously remembering a conversation we'd had a long time ago on Laney's birthday. Ironically, it had been ten years since then. He kissed me on top of my head and said "I'd like a small celebration with just the three of us. You and Violet are all I need to make it a good day."

I grabbed Cam's hand and gently placed his palm against my stomach, looking up into his beautiful eyes the entire time. "Do you think you have room for another person in the picture?"

"You're. . .?"

"I am," I confirmed as he gave me a radiant smile.

Cam lifted me off my feet and ecstatically spun me around the room before Violet came in and said that she wanted him to spin her around, too. And since he was thoroughly wrapped around her little finger, of course he complied. I held onto the present I'd helped Violet wrap for Cam and rubbed my stomach. I watched my husband spinning our daughter around and smiled as I heard her joyful laughter. Years ago, I left the city and struck out on my own. I started over in two beautiful towns with the most wonderful people I would ever know. I'd had my ups and downs. I'd had my highs and lows. I'd had more than my fair share of blessings. This was it. This was my life and I loved it. Everybody has a story. It's the cumulative experience that every day they have lived amounts to. This is my story. Wait, no, this is my _tale_. And it's a very good one if I do say so myself. This is the tale of my life and my tale of two towns.

The End.


End file.
